


Franchouchou feat.

by fyras14



Category: Zombieland Saga (Anime)
Genre: F/F, F/M, Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Mourning, Slice of Life, Zombies, legendary yamada tae
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-13
Updated: 2019-10-31
Packaged: 2019-11-17 17:38:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 30
Words: 86,503
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18103268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fyras14/pseuds/fyras14
Summary: The saga of the dead is just beginning...but when a secret is exposed, will Franchouchou still be standing by the end of it all? (Weekly updates)





	1. An Omelet

**1 / An Omelet**

It was the early hours of the morning when she left; her friends had pretended to be asleep as they watched her fix her hair and makeup, as she put on her old performing clothes, the pale pink top and the skirt with frills, leaving her ribbon behind over the futon.

Sakura knew they were awake and yet, she didn’t care. She just made sure to fix herself as best as possible, made sure to look human before nodding and leaving her friends behind.

The girls made no move to stop her. They couldn’t.

Saki wonders if they should have expected it. Probably. Even the shady weirdo had expected it. Probably. But this was nothing like Lily’s old man, nothing like Reiko and her daughter. This was different.

Someone had found them out.

* * *

Months earlier, Franchouchou had just celebrated the new year.

Another year of being dead. Hooray.

“GOOD MORNING!!”

Kotaro Tatsumi marched into the old house’s dungeon, smiling from ear to ear. The girls were already seated, wondering what was in store for them today. Saki had been dreading the day ahead, but only because it meant something stupid was in the horizon. So, it was certainly surprising when their manager, hands on his hips had yelled at them to, “Get out more!” as if it was something natural for them to go and do. Being zombies made that a tad bit difficult.

“Umm...what…?” That was Junko. Sweet, shy, a little dead, Junko. To be fair, all of them were a little dead too.

“I said you need to get out more, you stupid zombies!” Kotaro yelled, inching towards them with a glare, or it looked like one. It was always hard to tell with that man’s sunglasses obscuring his eyes. “People are starting to talk!”

“What people?” Sakura asked, looking incredulous.

“All the people!” Kotaro yelled back as an answer.

The pink haired zombie just blinked. “...all the people of where?”

“OF EVERYWHERE! SERIOUSLY!? DO I LOOK LIKE A CRYSTAL BALL, YOU DUMB ZOMBIE!?”

Sakura just frowned, completely ignoring Kotaro, who had his face inches away from hers. Next to her, Ai rolled her eyes while Saki sighed, rubbing her temples as she felt a headache about to come in and ruin her day, if their manager didn’t ruin it first.

“Seriously, man...make sense for once in your life,” Saki said. “Unless you’re making shit up, explain.” Kotaro moved his face away from the still frowning Sakura to look at Saki.

“People talk,” he began, making the other girls, minus Tae, sigh in exasperation, “People talk...and they say Franchouchou is nowhere to be found!” The leader of said group raised an eyebrow at that.

“Okay, so what of it?”

“People talk!”

“...fuck you.”

“Wait...are you saying there’s rumors about us? Is that what it is?” Sakura asked him, tilting her head while their manager nodded her way, grinning and clapping as little Romero let out a bark from somewhere nearby.

“Exactly! Exactly! See, Saki, see!? Sakura gets me!”

“Only because she’s too nice to deck a dumbass like you,” Saki countered, glaring. Kotaro shrugged before turning to stare at the group at large.

“Rumors have been floating around that Franchouchou are nowhere to be found.”

“You already said that,” Ai remarked, crossing her bandaged arms over her chest and frowning.

“I WAS GETTIN’ TO THAT!” Kotaro yelled before coughing into his hand and starting again. “They say you’re nowhere to be found...and now, people are saying that their manager keeps them locked up! Like...like...zombies! Can you actually believe such nasty rumors?”

The girls were silent for a while, before Sakura, in a moment of absolute genius, told him, “Well, they’re not exactly wrong...you do keep us locked up. I mean, we are having this conversation in a dungeon of all places.”

While the other sentient zombies tried not to laugh, Kotaro screamed a lecture straight at Sakura’s face, who remained as calm as a log as their manager went on and on about “dumb zombie” this and that.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Saki hadn’t really thought much of it when Sakura’s memories had returned fully that night during the Arpino show; she was back, she was fine and that’s all that mattered.

The changes hadn’t been too noticeable, either. At first.

Sure, their friend was still practically the same person. She was the same sweet ol’ Sakura Minamoto Saki remembered meeting all those months back. And yet, she felt off. Not in a bad way, though, but just off. As if having her old memories and her new memories in the same head had done something to her personality.

Ai had commented on it one night, while Sakura was busy helping Tae get ready for bed.

“She’s got the added baggage of her old memories now,” she had said, glancing as Sakura wrestled with Tae to get the older woman’s shirt off so she could put on her pajamas. “And we all know how that went. She’s bound to act differently now and again. We should expect it.”

And they did. Sort of.

A couple of weeks after Arpino, when Kotaro was spewing some nonsense or the other, Sakura had, as always, asked him a question of where all this talk of nonsense was going and when Kotaro began yelling at her, instead of jumping or getting scared, Sakura asked him again, reorganizing her question to see if he was willing to answer it this time instead of yelling. Sure, she would still jump if Kotaro took her by surprise but that was becoming less and less of a problem as the days went by. She rarely took the man’s bait as well, preferring to sit still as he called for anyone to volunteer.

One particular day, after a rather nasty shouting match that had occurred earlier between Kotaro, Saki and Ai, Sakura had just sat in her chair during the meeting, glaring at their manager throughout.

She just glared. No questions. No nothing. The next day, Kotaro had come in and apologized for his behavior for the past few days...by yelling some more. Of course, Sakura had just sighed and the glaring had stopped. Saki did remember that knowing smile that Yugiri had sent Sakura’s way, but she didn’t think much of it. She and the others certainly weren’t complaining that Sakura managed to get Shades in line.

And while Sakura’s assertiveness was something to behold, the extra baggage that came with her human memories was still there.

Saki had hoped that the Arpino success would get her out of her funk but she was wrong.

There would be times when Sakura was feeling down and they didn’t know what to do.

It had started with asking for a small break during practice, she was tired and she just needed a minute. Sometimes she would ask to leave practice early, on account that she couldn’t concentrate and would probably hold everyone else back. When this happened, either Lily or Saki decided that a break was in order, which was preferable to leaving their friend alone with her misery. They couldn’t do that to Sakura.

On particular bad days, at least Saki thought they were bad, Sakura would head straight to bed after practice. It didn’t matter if it was six o’clock at night and the others still had energy to spare, Sakura would just lay on her futon and be out like a light in seconds. They hadn’t really thought too much about it the first time it happened, that is until they saw Tae’s concerned expressions, or when they woke up the next day and Tae was still there, standing over Sakura’s futon, biting her hand like she had done those days when Sakura had forgotten them. Before anyone could do anything, however, Sakura was up and she immediately worried over Tae, apologizing for sleeping in and forgetting about her.

The fact that Tae had been worried at all had been enough for the others to worry too.

And then, one day, after coming back from a small meet-and-greet with fans, Sakura had just gone straight to bed without removing her makeup or changing into her pajamas. It hadn’t even been noon yet. That had been enough for everyone to worry tenfold, and even the normally calm Yugiri seemed upset.

The girls had decided right then and there to do something and quickly, formulated a plan.

Kotaro had began giving them spending money a few weeks ago. The plan was to make an excuse to go outside and just walk, buy some ice cream or go to the shops, do something, anything.

So, while Lily and Yugiri (plus a worried Tae) went over to wake Sakura from her slumber, the two former idols and the former teen rebel huddled up to the side.

“What the fuck…? She was fine a few hours ago…!” Saki whispered, glaring at no one in particular. Ai gave a worried glance at Sakura before shaking her head.

“It doesn’t really work that way…” she explained, “It’s...complicated.” Sakura had never really explained fully how her bad luck had made her life a miserable mess, but Ai had gotten the picture of it.

Wasting your social life just so you could get to the high school of your dreams and then failing would bring anyone down. Wanting to be something and failing every single time would get to a person.

“You...you don’t think she still feels...like she doesn’t belong in our group because of her bad luck?” Junko asked shyly; behind them, Lily had managed to finally wake Sakura, and was now currently telling her about their plans to get some ice cream and browse the shops nearby.

“Possibly,” Ai replied with a nod, glancing as Sakura offered a sleepy smile to Lily, nodding. Yugiri sent a nod their way, confirming that Sakura was coming with them.

“That’s bullshit!” Saki remarked, shaking her head. “Sakura should know by now that we don’t care about her rotten luck!”

“That’s not really the problem, though...she thinks it is…” Ai said, watching from the corner of her eye as Lily and Yugiri fixed up Sakura’s makeup and messy hair, all the while Tae bit on the pink haired zombie’s head, much to Sakura’s nervous confusion.  
“For now, let’s try to lift her spirits up...it's the best we can do without making her feel like a burden.” Saki just shook her head, glaring to the side while Junko offered her a small nod.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

The next day, while Sakura was busy napping, Saki had taken Junko, Ai and Yugiri aside while Lily and Tae kept Sakura company.

“Okay...any ideas to get this girl out of bed?” their leader began, looking first at Ai and then at Junko and Yugiri.

“Nothing really comes to mind…” Junko replied, shaking her head.

Saki passed a hand over her hair. “Goddammit...this was much easier when she was being a moody bitch...” Despite the crud way of putting it, the girls couldn’t help but agree. Sure, their efforts and a good placed slap had been unwelcome at first, but Sakura nonetheless had become whole again.

“I mean, it’s not like this is any better,” Ai pointed out.

“Hmm…perhaps a different kind of physical approach is required?” Yugiri wondered, making Saki raise an eyebrow at the older woman.

“Physical approach? Like what?”

“Yugiri...please,” Junko began only for Yugiri to laugh and shake her head.

“I did not mean that kind of approach, Lady Junko...do not worry. I was thinking of offering Lady Sakura a massage.”

“A massage?”

Yugiri nodded. “Yes. We were taught not only to offer pleasure but comfort as well…” Ai and Junko blushed at the comment while Saki placed a hand on her chin, glancing at the sleeping Sakura nearby.

“So…you’re thinking she needs to relax?” Yugiri nodded.

“Certainly. Sleeping may provide relief somewhat, but it's not what Sakura needs at the moment.”

“There’s also the possibility it might affect her coordination if she’s always tired,” Ai pointed out. “The last thing we need is her feeling guilty about ruining the performances…” The former Heisei idol turned to Yugiri. “I’m sure you can make up an excuse to offer Sakura a massage, Yugiri...so, let’s see if it helps.” Yugiri smiled before nodding and walking off to join Lily, Tae and the snoozing Sakura.

“You thinkin’ Yugiri’s plan might not work?” Saki asked after the courtesan had left.

Ai shook her head. “It might...just as much as it might not...we’ll just have to wait and see.”

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

As it turned out, Yugiri’s suggestion had actually worked. Somewhat.

The courtesan had found an excuse to offer her services when she had noticed Sakura stretching, quickly coming up with the excuse that she seemed tense. Their friend had been a little against it at first but after some gentle prodding from Yugiri had gladly accepted the massage with the courtesan quickly offering massages to the others as cover. The last thing they all wanted was Sakura to think they were all going out of their way for her and cause her depression to kick in the negative thoughts.

So it became a routine that Yugiri would offer a massage once every two days; she would start by asking Lily, then Junko or Ai, before ending with Sakura and Saki, everyone holding their breath when it was Sakura’s turn. There were times when Sakura would gladly accept the massage, and others she would just shake her head.

But, it seemed that the massages were helping. Sakura didn’t go straight to bed after practice, nor did she ask for an excuse to take a break during it.

Everyone had surely been relieved to see their friend with more energy, but Saki knew they weren’t out of the woods yet.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

It had been Tae that had woke everyone up; she sounded anxious, growling into the night as she moved her head from right to left trying to find something.

By the time someone had turned on the lights, they noticed exactly what was missing. Sakura. Her futon was in disarray, courtesy of Tae.

Immediately, Saki had jumped out of her futon and ran towards the attic only to come back empty-handed. Sakura wasn’t there.

Tae let out a groan, sprinting on all fours towards the mansion’s main entrance. The rest of Franchouchou followed as fast as they could. Before they could even reach their feral friend, they heard barking, a yelp, and things crashing as they hit the wooden floor.

When the girls finally found Tae, the feral zombie was over Sakura, the latter with makeup on, and bags scattered all over the floor, Romero barking with joy at seeing the other girls come to join them.

* * *

“Goddammit egghead...warn us next time, will ya?”

Sakura let out a nervous chuckle as she watched her hands on the sink. Currently, the girls, plus Romero, were in the mansion’s kitchen. The bags that Sakura had with her neatly placed in the nearby counter.

“W-well...I did want to surprise you guys…”

“By disappearing in the middle of the night?”

“More like the early hours of the morning,” Ai put in, giving Sakura a disapproving look. “You should have at least warned us...Tae was worried about you.”

“Oh, Tae...I’m so sorry!” the pink haired zombie replied, turning to her friend, who hadn’t let go of Sakura for the past few minutes. It was a little difficult to move around, however, but Sakura didn’t have the heart to tell Tae to let go. “I...well, I didn’t think she’ll get so worried...I was just gone for a few hours…”

“Where did ya go, anyway?” Saki asked her, frowning. “Shades is gonna give you hell for leaving like that.”

“He knows that I left, actually,” Sakura explained as she began to grab a few things from the bags; eggs, fish, dried squid, a few packs of noodles and some fruit. “I went to a nearby mart...and well...I wanted to make you guys some breakfast.”

“Umm...what?”

Sakura turned to her friends and smiled. “To thank you...for being so patient with me…”

Ah. Sakura had figured them out after all. So much for secrecy.

“I mean…” Ai began only for Sakura to shake her head.

“Hey, it's fine. I get it...I do miss cooking, though, so this is fine!”

A few hours later, Saki and the others were greeted with the best breakfast they had had in awhile; miso soup, white rice, some grilled squid with tamagoyaki on the side. Sakura had been so happy they had enjoyed it and told them she’ll probably be cooking some more in the future.

And that’s exactly what she did.

The coming days, Sakura would go out of her way to prepare meals for her bandmates (plus Kotaro). Breakfast would always be a treat, with lunch and dinner following after. Sakura would even go out of her way to make snacks for them, too, like onigiri, dango and one time she made a cake! Lily had been beyond herself with that last one.

And it seemed that cooking was truly helping Sakura take her mind off of the negatives.

Still, Saki and the others would be there for Sakura if she needed them (and help her stop Tae from eating all the food before she got to serve it).


	2. Henry Butter and the Chamber of Raaw

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title is random, I know...I'm trying to see how many nonsense titles I can come up with in the course of this story.

**2 / Henry Butter and the Chamber of Raaw**

Shinta Okoba needed a drink.

He needed more than one, of course. Perhaps he’ll bring that bottle he had saved from New Year’s and drink it all up. Yeah, that sounded like a good plan. Get that headache going before anything else could.

Although, he reasoned, if he started drinking now, he wouldn’t be able to make sense of these girls.

Franchouchou.

These girls were still small time and yet they had managed to make such an impact; from Karatsu to Kashima to the corners of Saga City and beyond, the girls were truly an amazing bunch.

And yet, here he was, itching for a drink. All because of these girls.

He let out a sigh before looking over the pictures his assistant had taken in Arpino all those months back one more time. Okoba looked over the pictures of numbers Three, Four and Six, before staring at the pictures of the deceased that lay nearby.

Ai Mizuno, Junko Konno and Lily Hoshikawa. Two of them had been idols and the other had been a TV star. All of them had taken the world by storm with their performances. And all of them were dead. But the more Okoba stared, the less sure he was about everything he knew about these deceased celebrities.

Here where three girls that looked exactly like Mizuno, Konno and Hoshikawa and he couldn’t make heads or tails out of the whole situation. Did they even know they looked like dead celebrities? Had they cared?

Okoba put his hands over his face and groaned.

What the heck was going on here? Was he mad? Was he just seeing things where they were none?

The man shook his head, eyeing the cabinet behind him. He was pretty sure that bottle was still there. Okoba shook his head. No. He couldn’t drink now. Not yet, anyway. He still had work to do.

Okoba put the pictures of the three Franchouchou girls aside, and focused on the remaining girls. A part of him was almost glad these other girls had not sent off alarm bells the moment he saw them, but even then he couldn't be so sure. If he did an internet search now, would he find similar looking girls...all dead?

He shook his head again, and resisting the drink, began his search.

Okoba started with One, putting her picture in the search engine to see if he could find anything. An hour later, all he had found out were blog posts and forums about Franchouchou. A few similar questions were posted here and there, like if anyone knew their real names, favorite snacks and did they have an internet account, all typical things fans were interested in. There were a few other topics that Okoba skipped altogether for the sake of his sanity. But he didn’t find anything beyond Franchouchou for Number One.

He was almost glad. Number One was just your typical run-of-the-mill girl. There was no dead girl sharing the same face. He could breathe easy. For now.

Deciding his search was over for Number One, Okoba moved straight to Number Two, the tough girl, as some fans in those forums put it. He immediately skipped over the forums and Franchouchou fan blogs, trying to focus on finding something else. Twenty pages of internet searching later, he found it.

It was an old article from newspaper that had been out of print for the past five years.

Local news, 1997. A terrible accident was reported at Kagamiyama, where a local girl went off a cliff and met her end in a fiery explosion. The deceased was said to be a member of the biker gang, Dorami. Name Nikaido Saki. A picture, or rather, a mugshot stood near the text. The girl in question, Nikaido, had shorter hair and a much youthful face, small scratches here and there. She had a toothy grin, as if she was glad she was caught and was daring an escape.

Okoba let out a breathe. Hot damn. Even without the longer hair, this dead girl and Number Two were almost identical. Perhaps distant relatives maybe? That would make sense, wouldn’t it? Nikaido had been too young (probably) to have any children before her time of death, and even if she had had, the child would be too old to join some idol group. Right?

Still, he printed the article and the mugshot and placed it together with Number Two’s picture from the Arpino show.

Hours later, he’ll wonder why he even printed the article out, but cared little as he moved to Numbers Five and Zero.

He was almost glad he hadn’t really found much on Five. No dead girls to compare her to, no accidents, no nothing. For all he knew, Five too, was like One, no history no nothing. He would have breathe easy if he hadn’t spotted that painting however.

The woman depicted in the painted was beautiful, her kimono a bright red, with flowers and petals all over, a kiseru held tightly in one hand, with a fan in the other. Her long auburn hair was held up tight in a bun, the shape of a heart in its center. _Yugiri_ , the artist had called it, leaving behind a small text that read, “To the most beautiful woman in Saga…” Year 1878.

Another half hour of searches found many other paintings and woodblock prints of the same woman. Many depictions of the woman showed her with clothes and other times in sexual poses and without a kimono to speak off. Most of these paintings appeared to be by the same man, a few give or take were unknowns. But they all had the same title, Yugiri.

A round of research later revealed very little of the woman in the painting, only that she had been some sort of courtesan that had died young back in the Meiji era.

Okoba printed the more modest-looking painting and put it close to Number Five’s picture. If it weren’t for the art style, he could have sworn they were twins.

At least, Five’s appearance made sense. If this Yugiri did exist, she was probably an ancestor of sorts. Yeah. That made sense. Probably.

He shuddered and moved to Zero.  

Three hours later, he found absolutely nothing. Nothing beyond forums and fan sites and videos. Nothing. Number Zero was a literal unknown. Pictures showed nothing.

Okoba let out a sigh of relief.

(no dead girl here, thank the gods)

The man looked at his desk again. Five out of the seven girls had doppelgangers, except for Numbers One and Zero.

He glanced at the photos of One and Zero and then he looked at his computer. He’ll give One another shot and probably try Zero tomorrow; two hours later and Okoba was back where he started.

Beyond the forums and websites and blogs, there was nothing beyond Franchouchou for the one known as Number One.

So, it came as a surprise when he noticed an article just forty pages into the search, detailing local accidents. A part of Okoba was almost dreading what he’ll find but he still clicked the link which sent him to a local newspaper’s web page. The article that had been opened detailed a hit-and-run and by the side a photo of a girl: Local girl, Minamoto Sakura, killed at the tender age of 17. Year 2008.

* * *

**_Karatsu Local News, April 07, 2008_ **

_“In the early hours of Monday morning, a young woman, Minamoto Sakura, was run down by an unknown individual riding a truck.”_

_“According to witnesses living in the area, the truck is said to have appeared from nowhere before speeding off in the direction of Miss Minamoto’s residence. Neighbors did not think much of it as they had seen trucks speeding by on occasion.”_

_“That all changed when the truck struck Miss Minamoto, sending her flying over the vehicle before she crumpled on the street behind it. By the time neighbors reacted, the suspect had sped off.”_

_“Minamoto was pronounced dead at the scene...cause of death...head trauma...broken neck…brokenー”_

_“...police are currently investigating…”_


	3. So Metal World

**3 / So Metal World**

Another day, another concert.

So much not death metal.

For a pair of metalheads, coming to these girly concerts would have been a sin but not when Franchouchou was involved. Sure, they had pulled the wool over their eyes but it had all been worth it. That rap battle had all been worth it and they hadn’t been disappointed since.

“I can’t believe Zero went all crazy on that chicken man, man,” came chubby Sato, grinning from ear to ear as he looked at the video he had taken of the event on his phone. “Is it like some inside joke because of that commercial?”

Kanuka, tall and skinny, shrugged with a grin. “Probably. Gotta hand it to them, though. Number One’s reaction was the best! Did you see how quickly she moved!? Damn! That was so metal!”

Sato nodded with a big laugh.

Of course he had seen it all. As soon as the chicken man appeared, Zero’s eyes seemed to glow before she jumped on him and the chase began. One was the only girl that reacted fast enough, literally jumping over the table with the merchandise to give chase with Two hot on her heels.

He had taken video of the whole event, had even heard some cheering from the fans as the chase was on.

“Man, when Zero goes all out, she goes all out!”

Kanuka nodded. “Well, she is kinda brutal...maybe that’s her shtick.”

That made sense. Zero almost seemed to act standoffish whenever there was meet-and-greets and photo ops. Maybe it was an idol thing?

“Heh, it's a damn weird one, though...but I’m not complaining! She’s amazing...right after Two, of course!” Sato’s eyes seemed to sparkle as he said that, making Kanuka roll his eyes.

“She’s probably not interested, man. And besides, she’s too young for you.”

“You can admire someone without it being love, man!” Sato replied smiling. “Besides, I know she’s out of anyone’s league, anyway…” Kanuka sighed.

“Whatever, man.”

“Anyway, when you think they’re releasing their CD, eh? I’m itching to hear some good songs in my car,” Sato said, scratching his head. “Or at least in the comfort of my home.”

“Probably next year...I’m itching to hear that rap battle again.”

Sato nodded, grinning from ear to ear.

How could they forget that second performance? The one where they did the magic tricks and One and Two duked it out in a rap. They still couldn’t make heads or tails of the zombie story line they were using before, but it didn’t matter. That rap had been epic. It was too bad no one had recorded that one. Sato blamed himself the most, though. He knew the old folks wouldn’t have bothered and by the time it got good, Sato had been too late to record. Even Kanuka had been disappointed.

Well, they’ll just have to be patient.

Franchouchou had surprised them before after all. Now, all they had to do was wait and see.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Reiko had never really been a fan of idols.

Growing up, she thought they were a waste of time. She preferred the open roads and wind blowing through her hair as she rode with her gang, Dorami.

The gang had been her life, her family. And then, stupid Saki Nikaido had to fly off of a cliff and die. That’s when Dorami truly broke apart. Reiko supposed that she should have seen it coming. Saki had had charisma and guts and that was all it took to keep the group from eating each other when it got rough to run their territory, not unlike that other gang they dragged out of Kyushu during their early years as Dorami. But now, Dorami was gone. Korosuke was one of the few biker gangs that still operated in the area and if her daughter had actually gone through with it all, Dorami would still be around. Well, Dorami was still around, in name only at least, because of the crazy stunt pulled by an idol. An idol of all people.

Reiko still couldn’t understand it all.  

Needless to say, she had become a fan. It was weird, really.

Two had saved her daughter’s life by risking her own and that had been enough for Reiko.

Franchouchou were an odd group of girls. Numbered zero to six, the girls had just appeared out of nowhere to take Saga by storm. That had been what Maria had told her once, after reading that article by some Shinta Okoba.

Now, the two of them were coming home from a small concert that had been held near Drive-In Tori of all places.

It wasn’t like Reiko had not seen the commercial. Her husband had tried not to laugh during the whole Kokko-kun scene were one of the girls bit the costumed man’s behind. Reiko had just given her husband a look despite the growing smile forming on her face.

Seeing the commercial a second time, however, had brought back a bit of bittersweet memories.

It reminded her of the old days, how she and her girls would go to Drive-In Tori to catch a meal. Saki always had a big grin on her face as she sat down to eat. Reiko was sure she would have laughed her head off had she seen that silly commercial.

(but Saki was gone and only her memories remained)

“...that girl’s brutal as always,” Maria muttered as she and Reiko stepped inside their modest home.

Reiko chuckled. “I suppose so.”

“Keh! I didn’t even get to meet up with Two again…”

Maria had been looking forward to talking to Two again; she had missed the last meet-and-greet a few weeks ago and she figured the Drive-In Tori concert will be a perfect opportunity to meet up with her and just talk.

Unfortunately, the stunt with Kokko-kun had put an end to that.

One, Two and Zero had to, quite literally, put everything on hold. That girl, One, had even jumped over the table when Zero began chasing the guy in the chicken suit, followed closely by Two, who had just run after them, no jumping necessary.

What had ensued was the most humorous thing Reiko had seen in awhile, even the few girls from Korosuke she had seen in the crowd had been laughing and cheering them on. Misa had been there as well, nodding respectfully Reiko’s way before laughing at the antics of the three girls and the chicken.

After a while, as the other girls (minus Four, who was the shy one of the group), continued on with greeting their fans, the other two girls had managed to catch up to Zero and while One held her down and said a few words, Two had let out a sigh and grinned at the crowd as she waved to their cheers. Kokko-kun had fled towards the Drive-In Tori, trailing behind a few feathers as the crowd cheered and laughed. At that time, however, the man in sunglasses, their manager Reiko presumed, had explained that the girls had to leave in fifteen minutes and so, Reiko and Maria had missed their chance to talk to Two, despite making the line.

“There’s always next time,” Reiko told her.

“I guess…”

Reiko patted her daughter’s shoulder and told her that she’ll get started on dinner.

She was itching for some chicken herself.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Takeo Go was home alone, smiling at the video that played on the laptop in his lap.

His job had kept him from attending Franchouchou’s latest mini concert but he was thankful that fans had recorded the show for those that couldn’t attend.

The concert had taken place in Imari, right there in the local Drive-In Tori.

Drive-In Tori’s parking lot had been used during the event; the girls singing and dancing on top of a makeshift stage overlooking the trees behind them.

Takeo recognized most of the songs the girls were singing. He had heard them many times before during the previous concerts he had managed to attend. The girls had even sang one of the songs they had sang in Arpino.

(a few comments expressed relief that the stage hadn’t fallen down this time)

It was too bad they didn't sing his favorite song, the one that had Six in the center. He guessed with such a small event, the girls had to prioritize which songs they would sing before moving to the meet-and-greet. Such a shame really.

Even if they didn’t sing his favorite song, he still enjoyed their music.

He laughed when the scene at the meet-and-greet started. The chicken man, Drive-In Tori’s mascot, Takeo guessed, appeared and the chase began. One of the girls almost jumped at him, while two members of the group ran after her. The chase was at least five minutes long, the cheers and laughs of the crowd the only music he could hear. But then, his smile vanished, a sob forming on his lips as the camera panned towards the remaining girls near the tables; Five had a hand on her cheek and was smiling, Three was shaking her head in exasperation, Four was hiding behind the stage blinking and Six...oh, Six.

He knew Six was someone else. A girl that shared his daughter’s face.

Takeo placed a hand on his face as he closed the computer, not even bothering to continue the video.

Would he always feel like this, he wondered.

Lily was dead and gone. And Six...and Six…

Takeo let out a laugh, tears spilling from his eyes as he turned to the shrine that held the photos of his wife and child. “Oh, Lily...Lily...forgive your foolish father…”

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Aoi Mizuno was a successful woman.

There was no denying it.

At seven, she had decided to become a doctor, like her father and grandfather before her. Eleven years later, she had graduated with honors from high school before moving to medical school, where six years later, she’ll officially graduated and achieved her lifelong dream. And in between it all, she had given birth to a beautiful daughter, who had dreams of her own.

But that daughter had been dead for almost eleven years now, burnt to a crisp by a freak bolt of lightning.

They called her the Legendary Ai Mizuno after that.

But Aoi had vehemently disagreed. That’s not the kind of thing she had wanted for her daughter. Ai was more than the girl that died in the middle of a concert.

Her daughter had been a leader, had been determined, had achieved her dream of being an idol. Iron Frill had been at the forefront during the late 2000s and then Ai died and the only thing anyone would talk about was her death.

Aoi hated it all.

Ai’s death had killed that spark in Aoi’s heart.

For months, she lost herself in memories, lost herself in the past where fights and dreams had taken place: Ai’s career, Aoi’s disagreement, their stubbornness, their arguments, making up and the storm. Eventually, Aoi picked herself again and continued on, trying to move forward while the world was stuck with it's legend.

They had stopped asking her about Ai years ago. Everyone remembered Ai but they forgot about Aoi.

Aoi had been living decently for the past eleven years; she still worked at the old clinic, still visited family during the holidays. Her life was stable.

But then, one day, right after New Year’s, Aoi had come to the clinic and announced she would be leaving to open her own private practice in Saga. The decision had surprised her coworkers and bosses, but at the end of the day they had wished her good luck.

In truth, opening a clinic of her own had been a cover. She was too ashamed to admit the real reason she had been planning to move to Saga.

Aoi didn’t want to admit she was chasing a ghost, a memory, a dream.

But the moment she had seen that article, she had wept.

She saw Ai. Ai happy. Ai smiling. Ai singing. Ai dancing.

Aoi knew it wasn't Ai, knew that girl wasn’t her little girl but her face...

It wasn’t Ai, it wasn’t Ai, no matter how hard her heart wanted her to be. Ai was dead and forgotten. Ai was a legend.

But knowing that did not stop Aoi. Perhaps it was her curiosity, perhaps it was her broken heart, whatever it was, the woman had made her decision. By the end of the week she had finished packing, had said her goodbyes to former patients and coworkers, before taking the long drive to Saga.

Karatsu seemed like a good place for a clinic.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Franchouchou.

Originally called Death Musume and Green Face.

(seriously, who came up with those names anyway?)

The man eyed the old flyer on his hands, a cigar hanging on his lips; the flyer was an announcement for last year’s Arpino show. According to the stories, Franchouchou had literally brought the house down, so to speak.

His blue eyes moved away from the flyer and scanned the other papers scattered on the desk before him.

They were printed articles of Franchouchou’s shows. Articles about the haunting in a hot springs hotel. Some ripped pages from sensational newspapers and magazines detailing the so-called monster sightings of Karatsu, the walking dead, they called it. Beside the ripped pages was a printed page from a death metal blog, detailing Franchouchou’s original appearance. This last one had part of the text circled with a red pen, a few question marks written beside it.

_“Zombie story line…?”_

_“...weird magic tricks…?”_

The man’s eyes turned back to the flyer in his hand. His eyes soften as he stares at the girl known as Number One, her smile frozen in place. After a while, the stranger shakes his head.

“...what the hell am I doing…?”


	4. Cooking with Number One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early update! Since I won't be posting anything tomorrow. The next update will be on the 8th. See you then.

**4 / Cooking with Number One**

Ever since Sakura had started making their meals, the girls had noticed that their friend seemed in happier spirits. Nothing could really beat her happiness when she performed on stage but cooking was a close second.

From what the girls gathered, Sakura had originally started with dessert baking before moving on to saltier and spicier dishes. Sakura’s mother had taught her well and the internet had helped her expand her knowledge.

As the days went by and Sakura prepared meal after meal, her friends had come up with a decision. They had decided to help out Sakura in the kitchen. Unfortunately, they did run into the problem on how to help as most of the other girls had little to no experience in the kitchen.

Saki had never bothered to learn. Beyond heating water for packaged ramen, the ex-biker preferred to eat out with her gang, sometimes she’ll bring some take-out for her old folks or eat at home when granny was making her favorite, chicken.

Ai and Junko knew how to cook but they had rarely done it back when they were alive; Ai’s mom was the official cook of the house, if she had time of course and Junko’s parents would do most of the cooking. Once their careers took off, the last thing in their minds had been cooking.

Lily, too, was in the same boat as Ai and Junko. When she was alive, Pappy would do most of the cooking in the house but she would also help as best as she could, passing out ingredients, keeping watch as the food cooked, those sorts of things. 

As for Yugiri, she had never been given the opportunity to cook while alive. She did not believe herself skillful enough to provide an adequate meal.

Tae, well, she was  _ legendary _ but for what, no one knew. Culinary skills might not have been part of her skill set when she was alive (and awake).

Despite this, Sakura was more than willing to teach her friends if they wanted to learn and help was always welcome in the kitchen when cooking meals for friends. 

* * *

Junko and Ai couldn’t help but admire Sakura’s skills in the kitchen. It was odd seeing the normally timid and nervous girl look so determined beyond singing and dancing.

Their friend knew exactly what she was doing; her knife work seemed almost perfect to the untrained eye, she knew her measurements by heart, knew different preparation methods and could manage a few shortcuts when preparing meals here and there.

For now, Sakura wanted her friends to start with simple dishes. The pink haired zombie figured her bandmates would improve with time, but she’ll rather they start small before getting to the more complicated dishes. So, per Lily’s (and Saki’s) request, the girls were making some ramen.

Sakura was thinking of making some shoyu flavored ramen. The Saga native had already set aside all the things they’ll need to prepare it and had even gone out of her way to get premade chicken stock for the soup, mostly to save time as Kotaro would have a fit if he saw her cooking 24/7 and making stock, especially for some delicious tonkotsu ramen, took almost a whole day. With the premade stock already handy, the ramen was easier to complete.  

Now, it was just a matter of preparing the toppings for the ramen.

Sakura had assigned Ai and Junko to prepare the noodles, while she cut the ingredients they’ll be adding as the toppings, like spring onions and narutomaki. The young woman had decided to let the two former idols cook the other toppings, such as the boiled eggs and some grilled chicken and meat to add to the ramen once it was finished.

Once all the ingredients where cooked and cut, Sakura would make one bowl to show how it was prepared so Ai and Junko could follow her example.

It was simple. Yet it came as a great surprise when things started to catch on fire minutes later.

The girls couldn’t quite pinpoint where the fire started but they knew the villain was a towel. A towel that had been a little too close for comfort near the stove.

Ai and Junko had been busy talking by the side of the stove, occasionally glancing once or twice to check on the noodles. The Heisei idol had begun the conversation talking about how to best improve their choreography, as the girls still had some trouble mastering the steps of their dances. Junko had offered her two cents in, wondering perhaps if they could improvise or make new dances for their songs so as to bring something new to the table; Ai had thought about it and nodded her agreement, while Sakura had nodded nearby, the girl a little too busy with separating and cutting up ingredients.

Had anyone being paying attention, they would have noticed the towel lonely by the stove before a slight movement from Sakura moved it a little closer. It then proceeded to catch a few flames and before long, it was already growing before spreading to the still distracted Sakura’s navy blue school jacket.

The pink haired zombie had been so distracted, she didn’t even react until after someone splashed cold water on her back.

Sakura blinked, confused, before turning towards her friends. Ai held the incriminating water bottle in hand. “...uh...why?” 

“You were on fire?” 

“...WHAT!?! FIRE!?” 

On the plus side, Junko had reacted fast enough to stop the fire from spreading. The bad news was that she used the water preparing the noodles to put it out and now they had a big pile of noodles to clean up. 

Unfortunately, Kotaro and the others, upon hearing Sakura’s panicked scream, had rushed to the kitchen where their manager proceed to yell at them for almost an hour straight after finding out what had happened. Saki had made an honest effort not to laugh at the embarrassed girls while Lily and Yugiri tried to stop Tae from eating the noodles on the floor. 

And that was day one. 

* * *

Well, day one had turned out less than spectacular but at least Sakura had managed to get the ramen done. After a few hours, of course.

Ai and Junko had been banned from kitchen duty, with Kotaro rudely calling them “fire hazards” and “pyromaniac zombies” after the whole mess. And despite Sakura saying it was an accident, Kotaro wouldn’t hear of it.

Surprisingly, Junko and Ai took it quite well, except for the whole fire hazard and pyromaniac comments, assuring Sakura that it was fine. They made a mistake, they’ll owe up to it and if owing up to it was making sure their friend didn’t catch on fire because they were distracted, it was fine.

Today, it was Saki’s turn in the kitchen.

Instead of ramen, Sakura had opted to make some grilled salmon with a side of rice and miso soup. For dessert, the pink haired zombie had bought some green tea ice cream that had been on sale.

Grilling the fish should have been easy but…

Sakura couldn’t help but stare at the coal-like thing before her, frowning slightly. Next to her, Saki grumbled.

While Sakura was busy preparing the rice, she had left Saki in charge of grilling the salmon but the moment the pink haired zombie turned her back, she could already smell the smoke. And now, the two zombies were staring at what used to be a salmon fillet.

“Saki...you did put it on medium heat like I told you, right?” 

“...uh, sure.” 

“Uh-huh.”

“Hey, at least I didn’t burn the damn house down!” 

“But you did burn the fish.” 

“Argh!” 

That was day two. 

* * *

A new day saw Sakura, Saki, Lily and Tae in the kitchen.

Today was Tae’s turn to help out. Everyone had been a little wary at first, of course. Tae wasn’t the most avid listener but if she could copy dance moves they figured she could get cooking down...somehow. At least, they thought it would be easier to play it safe and have Tae just pass the ingredients to Sakura so she could prepare them.

Saki and Lily had decided to tag along, to provide support should a kitchen nightmare occur. Ai and Junko were still considered fire hazards, so they wouldn’t be helping Sakura in the immediate future so it was up to Lily to make sure nothing would burn on her watch. 

“Heh...are you still on with that, Shrimpy?”

“It’s Lily!” Lily pouted. “And yeah! You burned fish! Who has ever heard of someone burning fish!?” 

“Hey! I was just a little impatient, okay!? At least I didn’t burn the freakin’ place down like those two lovebirds!” 

“At least they can say it was an accident…” the younger girl muttered to the side with a roll of her eyes. 

“You wanna die?” 

Sakura let out a nervous chuckle while next to her, Tae groaned hungrily, eyeing the food set up nearby.

“I really wouldn’t worry about anything burning today,” Sakura said. “I prepared the rice about an hour ago, anyway. Sushi’s rather simple to make, after all.” The pink haired zombie turned towards her unawakened friend, smiling before clapping her hands together. “Okay, Tae! Are you ready for...EH!?” 

While the other zombies had been busy talking, Tae had already gulped down most of the prepared vegetables and raw fish and was already grabbing fistfuls of rice. Sakura, Lily and Saki just stared at her as she continued eating the rice, nobody making a move to stop her. 

“Huh.” 

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

The three remaining members of Franchouchou were surprised to see Sakura and the others return from the kitchen ten minutes later.

Sakura had moved straight towards the bookshelf nearby, browsing a few books while Saki leaned against it. Tae tilted her head to the side and walked over to Sakura, groaning. Behind her, Lily skipped towards the bookshelf to help Sakura look for the right book. 

Ai, Junko and Yugiri blinked at their friends and their odd behavior. 

“Did something happen?” Ai asked after a while. 

“We’re ordering pizza tonight,” Saki explained gesturing with her head at Sakura. “Egghead’s trying to see if Shades has a directory around to get the number.” 

Junko and Ai exchanged looks while the courtesan looked mildly confused at the mention of pizza. 

“Umm...why are we ordering pizza?” the Showa idol inquired. Lily turned towards the former idols nearby and pointed a Tae.

“Tae ate all the food!” 

“...huh.” 

Tae let out another groan as Sakura finally found the directory and began looking for pizza places. 

An hour later, the girls were enjoying a freshly baked pizza, with Yugiri commenting it looked vaguely like mojiyaki but with a different taste. Sakura was kind enough to explain what pizza actually was as they ate. 

Day three over.

* * *

A day later, Sakura had decided to give sushi another try. It was Yugiri’s turn today and Sakura figured this simple dish would be a good way to get the courtesan started.

“See? After adding the sheet of seaweed you can start placing the ingredients...like so...then, you just roll it...” The courtesan nodded, watching as Sakura calmly began rolling the sushi into form before grabbing a knife and cutting the roll into even pieces. “Here!” The pink haired zombie move to grab a pair of chopsticks, and with them in hand, picked up a piece of sushi and offered it to Yugiri. The older woman merely blinked at the gesture before biting into the food offered. 

“My,” Yugiri said after finishing the piece of sushi. “It is quite appetizing.” Sakura grinned putting the chopsticks aside. 

“Isn’t it? You can fill sushi with just about anything, too! Uh...well, almost anything.” The zombie gestured with her head at the rice, meat and vegetables nearby. Just like yesterday, Sakura had prepared the rice a few hours earlier to save time. Yugiri just had to help her band mate with cutting and cooking the ingredients necessary for the meal. “Okay! Your turn, Yugiri. You can add whatever you want to your roll, but don’t add too much! You won’t be able to roll it properly if you do.”

The courtesan offered Sakura a smile and went to work. 

By the end, between the two of them, they had made at least twelve rolls, each filled with different meats and vegetables. Sakura had even gotten creative and made one with fruit inside, giving Yugiri a taste to get her verdict on the rather odd combination. Yugiri had found it a little too sweet, but she did say that Lily might enjoy the taste.

“Well, if she doesn’t, there’s always Tae! Or me, considering,” Sakura said, laughing while the courtesan chuckled. 

Day four had been quite the success. 

At least the girls finally figured who gave Sakura the least amount of trouble in the kitchen. 


	5. Truck’s Misbehavin’

**5 / Truck’s Misbehavin’**

A few days later, Okoba was back where he had started.

He had had his drink, more than he absolutely needed, in fact. The reporter had woken up from such a headache that he had forgotten almost everything he had done a day prior. The pictures, the articles, Sakura Minamoto’s death in a hit-and-run, everything.

The migraine had made him forget, made him irritable, made him wonder what all these pictures meant before throwing them in the trash.

His assistant had berated him days later, asking him if he had thrown the pictures he had taken from the Arpino event in the trash bin. Okoba had the decency to look guilty. But then he remembered. He remembered the ghosts of the past, remembered Ai Mizuno, Junko Konno and Lily Hoshikawa, all haunting him with the faces of Three, Four and Six. He remembered the articles he had read about Saki Nikaido and Sakura Minamoto, the fine prints he had found of the woman named Yugiri and the enigma that was Zero.

Asking for a few days off, Okoba got to work.

He printed every article he could find of the other three girls, minus Zero.

Okoba didn’t know what he was looking for. Siblings? Cousins? Distant relatives? He wanted to find something and make it mean anything.

A part of him was urging to let this go, that it wouldn’t be worth it, but the other, well, the other was stubborn. He wanted to know who these girls were and why they looked so much like the dead.

The man had seen the dots, he just needed to connect them. And since he knew nothing of the living, he’ll try searching with the dead.

Okoba skipped over Mizuno, Konno and Hoshikawa, moving straight to the real unknowns, Nikaido, Yugiri and Minamoto. Zero, he figured, could wait.  

He started with Nikaido and Dorami.

Making a few calls and sweet-talking his way to some files and documents, Okoba was able to get a file on Nikaido’s former criminal record (as well as a file on the Minamoto case at least the information they were willing to part with).

Vandalism, grand theft auto, street fighting...all before hitting fifteen.

According to the notes in the file, Nikaido had no immediate family. Parents were dead, grandparents died almost twenty years back. One trail gone cold.

Okoba moved to the file he had been given about Dorami. A biker gang formed from local girls living near the area around  Kagamiyama. The gang, from what the police had been able to gather, had been formed to fight another local gang by the name of Oki. The Oki were wannabe yakuza that terrorized local businesses with vandalism and threats. Apparently, the Oki had crossed the wrong people too many times because the next thing they knew, the girls they had terrorized came for a vengeance, beating them up before forcing them out of Kyushu. Not that they needed any help. As one detective put it, in-fighting plus the threat of tough as nails bikers had done the Oki in. Unfortunately, that meant Dorami was there to pick up the pieces.

The biker gang started small, picking on the local students to get their tributes and winning the rest in street gambling with other biker gangs. With the cash in hand, the Dorami gang grew and grew, with a few fights breaking out here and there but nothing the Dorami couldn’t handle. As it turned out, Nikaido and the first leader of Dorami, Reiko Kirishima, were quite the pair, taking out bands of twelve or more by themselves if the reports were to be believed. If anything, it certainly made sense for why the girls conquered most of Kyushu so quickly.

Okoba figured that their guts and power had to do a lot with it; having guts commanded a strange sort of respect and power, well, power was hard not to admire.

Yet as quickly as Dorami came to notoriety, it broke apart just as fast.

Okoba realized it all began with Saki Nikaido’s untimely death on that fateful day in August 1997.  

The death had been rather graphic, as expected of someone of Nikaido’s reputation. Falling off of a cliff had killed her and the explosion that followed after had scattered the pieces.

With Nikaido’s death, the power that Dorami once had began to wane. Their leader, Kirishima had stepped down just days after Nikaido’s passing. Later on, more gang members went their separate ways and Dorami became a shadow of its former self. The last leader, Souta Kenta, was arrested on 2009 for murdering a biker due to a dispute involving a man. After that, Dorami became history, or would have, but according to a blog that posted news about the happenings in Karatsu, word on the street was that Dorami had risen again. The story was an odd one.

Apparently, the leader and another biker gang had made peace with each other after a small dispute. No one was sure what had ended the dispute but rumor had it that on the foot of Mt. Kagamiyama they found the remains of a bike, burned to cinders. No bodies were found. 

Whatever had happened between the new Dorami and that other gang had to do with that burnt bike, but no one was able to make heads or tails of it, even local police were stumped. A mystery for another day, perhaps. 

Okoba let out a sigh. 

And that was the story of Saki Nikaido, nothing but fire and conquest left to her name. 

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Okoba was a little lost when it came to the courtesan called Yugiri.

There wasn’t much information besides prints and anecdotes of encounters with the courtesan. Nothing too explicit, of course. Most of the anecdotes Okoba had found that mentioned her were poetic in nature, describing her beauty, charisma and charm. Nothing much to go on if he was being honest. 

Eventually, after having no luck on the web, the reporter ventured to a few libraries, wondering if he would find information that the internet couldn’t provide. It took Okoba at best five hours before he found anything; more prints, even more provocative than before, a few other poems for the woman, some confessions, but still, not enough. So, the reporter decided to change his approach. He moved to find information on all the brothels that had been active during the Meiji era in Saga, to see if any of them had advertise the so-called “Legendary Courtesan”.  

Okoba was a little disappointed a day later. He found nothing.

The man suppose that was fair. Brothels wouldn’t have openly advertise their services during those times, and if there had been records, they had been lost.

Whatever Yugiri’s story had been, all was lost to the sands of time.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Okoba tried, once more, to find any information on Number Zero, or at least a lookalike, but try as he might, he comes out empty. A day later, he moves on.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

In all fairness, Okoba realized he shouldn’t have been so interested in Minamoto’s story. Perhaps it was the intrigue that seemed to rise up from something so simple. She wasn’t like Nikaido, not like the beautiful Yugiri. She was just normal.

At least, that’s what Okoba figured until he began reading the report and the extensive notes detectives had kept on the case. The report itself, unlike Nikaido’s, was heavily redacted, especially when it concerned the names of the victim’s family and friends, as well as no addresses.

The man was a little miffed about it but his friend at the station had informed him that it was to protect their privacy. “Or rather, to watch my back,” the friend had told Okoba, because after all, it wasn’t Okoba’s neck on the line, it was his if they found out he was giving confidential information on a still open case. Well, whatever. Okoba would just have to make due.

(he’ll have to take a look at that old newspaper article to get a name) 

Minamoto grew up in the island of Kyushu, born and raised in Karatsu. Her family includes both parents, divorced in 2004, and a younger brother. Family also extended to distant uncles and cousins. The report also included persons of interest, like the mother’s new boyfriend and a few of Minamoto’s classmates. Protocol, the reporter figured. 

(Okoba made a mental note; try to locate immediate family as soon as he could get a name. But for what, even he wasn’t so sure) 

Minamoto had been killed early in the morning, April 7, 2008. From what police had gathered, Minamoto had left for school earlier than usual that day before meeting her untimely demise minutes later. Okoba’s gaze harden as he caught the small note near this information. Police had found the victim’s father in shock, staring at the body while they waited for the ambulance to arrive. A few neighbors, witnesses of the accident, had provided most of the information on that fateful morning. 

Poor man. He must have heard the truck hitting her. Must have thought he would reach her on time.

The reporter shuddered and moved on, skimming over the details of the damage Minamoto had suffered. It was a rather graphic event, all things considered. She had been hit so hard that her body flew over the truck before landing on the pavement seconds later.  

He made a note.

Okoba didn’t know the speed one needed to send a person airborne after getting hit by a car but if Minamoto had been hit this hard to go over it...just how fast was that truck actually going? And in a residential area, to boot.

Minamoto had died almost instantly after hitting the ground, cracking her skull wide open. 

(and her father had seen her like that...Okoba shuddered again) 

He went on. 

The young woman had suffered multiple injuries, most likely suffered from the collision with the vehicle. Glass was found on the scene and all over Minamoto’s body, indicating that most of the damage came from the body breaking the windshield as the truck hit her. It was the head trauma that killed her in the end, surprising enough. The coroner did note that had the girl not cracked her skull open, she wouldn’t have long to live considering the damage to her internal organs.

Okoba put the coroner’s report aside and moved towards the people of interest.

Police, at first, had suspected an insurance fraud. It had happened before, sadly enough. But the investigations found nothing of the sort. The only one that had any life insurance was Minamoto’s father and most of that money would be going to his ex-wife and children, now only child. There was no benefit gained from Minamoto’s death. The girl’s mother had been living in the other side of Karatsu at the time and her boyfriend had just arrived at work. Minamoto’s brother had been living with his mother for over two years then. More protocol that ended up wasting time, Okoba figured as he turned to the other people of interest listed on the file.

Detectives had visited Minamoto’s school, name redacted (thank you very much), wondering if she had had any enemies or boyfriends of the sort when attending there. Okoba almost wanted to groan as he read the next notes; a girl like her had to be popular in  _ something  _ and it probably wasn’t academics. Jackass.

Minamoto, it turns out, was rather popular but not for the reasons detective asshole thought she was. The girl was known as sweet and kindhearted, lending a hand to anyone that needed it. She was not the best student but according to her teachers, she was far from average. Minamoto had scored high in exams and was an impressive athlete, apparently being the the fastest runner in her age group in middle school for at least two consecutive years. However, it wasn’t just her affinity for academics and sports that made her popular. A footnote at the end of the file informed Okoba that the detectives had found out that Minamoto was called the “Legendary Jinx” by some of her classmates.

Minamoto was well-known for having terrible luck, even her family couldn’t really deny that she did draw the short end of the stick most of the time. And when the kids of school had gotten wind of it, well, it was almost inevitable. The nickname itself had been utterly malicious, as one friend of Minamoto’s had told detectives. Yet, Minamoto never stopped being kind, being helpful.

One thing that did catch the detective’s attention, which Okoba took note of, was that Minamoto had not joined any clubs during her first year of high school. Perhaps she hadn’t been interested at the time or was she avoiding someone? Minamoto’s friends did say that she hadn’t really been active during her first year, either. She seemed off to them, although they figured it was the disappointed of not getting to her desired high school that had caused it. One girl did mention that just a few months before the end of their first year, Minamoto had returned to her old, friendly self. 

Nothing else was found on the classmates; there was a boy in her class that Minamoto had begun to hang out with due to their shared interests in music, but they found nothing on him either. He had been just as devastated by Minamoto’s passing like the rest of them. 

And with no more persons of interests nor suspects, the trail had gone cold. 

Not that the detectives handling the case cared, from what Okoba had deduced while reading their notes. The men had made up their mind a long time ago.

Case was open and shut, really. The driver, their killer, had been in a rush and stepped on the accelerator and Minamoto, in a moment of great carelessness, rushed to the street (in a residential area, Okoba noted) and was hit. The man, unwilling to take the blame, sped off. Case close, minus murderer. There had been no evil plot at the end of the tunnel, no conspiracy. Everything happened because of a careless girl that didn’t look both ways and a moron who woke up late. 

And yet, the case was open but Okoba knew better. Changes in the laws meant nothing if Minamoto’s case was hidden in the pile with the others, forgotten like the rest. 

He sighed. 

Minamoto’s story ended, lost within mountains of paperwork and terrible luck. 

* * *

_ “...according to witnesses’ reports, a bear has been seen near the forest by the foot of Kagamiyama...police have warned locals to beware of the animal as some encounters have turned deadly…” _

“A bear…?”

Junko sounded nervous, eyeing the old-school radio she had bought on one of their most recent outgoings.

The Showa idol had been all smiles when she spotted the model; she remembered having one exactly like this when she was alive. Unfortunately, the price had been a little too much and Kotaro was being rather stingy with the money as of late. Yet, the other girls noticing Junko’s sad smile, had pitched in, offering their allowances to get their friend that radio. The young woman had protested but everyone insisted and it had all been worth it at the end. Sure, it was bulky and it confused Yugiri to no end but it was a helpful device. So long as Tae didn’t try to eat it of course.

But now, the news had interrupted the tunes, the girls all staring at each other with some measure of worry and nervousness, well, minus Tae, who was napping by Sakura’s side.

As the news went on in the background, Saki scratched her head. “A bear? Seriously? Are there even wild bears in Karatsu?” she asked Sakura, who turned her head to the side, and put a hand on her chin.

“It’s probably a black bear that’s wandered too close…”

“Is that normal?” Ai asked but Sakura only offered a shrug.

“I remembered hearing a few incidents when I was alive but the bears just left on their own without biting or hurting anyone…”

The girls were silent for a while before Junko moved to turn the old radio off. 

“Let’s just hope people take that warning seriously,” Ai began, as the girls began to get ready for bed and Sakura began to wake up Tae to help her to her futon. “Besides, with any luck, the authorities will find the bear in no time.”


	6. Spooky Scary Calendars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early chapter update! 
> 
> Next week's update will not be on Monday, though...it will probably be in Saturday or Sunday. Sorry about that.

**6 / Spooky Scary Calendars**

“A...a photo shoot?”

 It was already a new day and some of the girls were already dreading what was to come.

 “That’s right! You corpses are having your first ever photo shoot...for, brace yourselves, a calendar!”

 “A calendar?” Ai repeated, sounding a mighty bit incredulous. “Can I ask why?”

 “Why not!?” Kotaro responded back, annoyed. “Why!? Think you’re too good for a calendar, eh!? EH!?” Ai glared at him as he turned his back to the girls. “Pah! This calendar isn’t just some calendar, it’s special! It's amazing! It’s一”

 “If it's anything like that ugly shirt design, I’ll rather not do it at all,” Lily interrupted, giving their manager a deadpan look. Ai nodded.

 “Or if it's anything like our web page….”

 “AH!” Kotaro turned to face the girls, slamming a hand on the blackboard behind him. “You...you girls are just so...so….DEAD!” That got him a few unimpressed looks, a pair of glares and a sad expression. “Those shirts were fabulous! You zombies don’t understand fashion at all!”

 Saki suddenly laughed. “Yeah, right! Those shirts are fabulous alright! They didn’t sell at all in our last event and we still have boxes full of that shit in the attic.” Sakura absentmindedly nodded in agreement as Kotaro made a face at Saki.

 “That’s true...they sold well the first time but after that, they stopped selling. The only things that seem to sell well are the signed autographs, the photos, and oh! That cute little towel with Romero on it.”

 “It is a cute design,” Lily agreed. The other girls, minus Tae who groaned, nodded.

 “And now you see why we must expand our horizons!?” Kotaro cried, crossing both arms over his chest. “We need new merch!”

 “Maybe we can start by getting a new shirt design,” Lily suggested but Kotaro was already shaking his head.

 “Not until those shirts are completely sold out!”

 “Yeah, sure...that’s definitely not happening,” the youngest muttered under her breath, while the ex-biker snickered.

 “So…” Sakura began, trying to gain Kotaro’s attention and avoid extending this meeting longer than it had to. “...what’s the calendar about, anyway? It has to have a theme, right?” The man began clapping.

 “Very good! Yes and yes! Our calendar has a theme! An amazing theme, mind you!” At that, Ai and Saki rolled their eyes. “This calendar must be special, after all! Limited time and all that jazz…” Kotaro stopped his clapping and nodded. “The theme is simple...SPOOKY. SCARY. SKELETONS!”

 Silence.

 “...what?” Saki asked.

 “SPOOKY SCARY SKELETONS!” Kotaro repeated.

 “B-but...how does that even…” Sakura shook her head. “...we are zombies, how would thatー”

 “WHATEVER!” Kotaro cried out, getting a little too close to the zombie’s face, making the girl jump slightly by the suddenness of it all. “Skeletons and zombies are both dead, stupid!” Sakura just stared at him wide eyed. Kotaro moved away from the pink haired zombie’s personal space and walked towards the blackboard. “So, that’s the theme.”

 “Umm...is that it?” Junko asked, sounding nervous. “That seems so…” she trailed off as their manager grinned.

 “Amazing? Interesting? Out of this world?”

 “Stupid.” Saki responded, looking bored. “Really, Shades? You wanna us to skin ourselves and start taking pictures?” Kotaro shook his head.

 “You girls just don’t have any imagination.”

 “Or that’s the first thing that came to your head when Sakura asked about the theme,” Ai said, raising an eyebrow at him. “Face it. You have no theme for this nonsense of a calendar you’re making us do.”

 “Hmph...believe what you want,” Kotaro told her. “The point is that we need merchandise. Money is getting low again...we have a few events scheduled in the coming days but we need new merchandise for the fans and for our collective wallets.”

 “It will cost money to get that calendar, too, you know,” Ai pointed out. “If the calendars don’t sell well…”

 Kotaro nodded. “That’s why they’re a limited time thing...makes it easier for us in case they fail.”

 “I guess…”

 Saki let out a sigh.

 “Okay...so a calendar...how they heck are we gonna do that?”

 //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

A few minutes later, the girls were back in their room; Junko and Ai were sitting together, leaning against each other while Saki lay on her futon, behind them, Tae wandered about as Yugiri, Sakura and Lily sat on the couch, the little girl already holding her favorite magazine and turning the pages.

 “Fuck this shit,” Saki muttered, turning to face Junko and Ai. “Did you ever have to deal with this nonsense?”

 “Are you talking about Mr. Tatsumi or the calendar?” the Showa idol asked, only for Saki to laugh.

 “Both, actually...but mostly the calendar,” their leader told them, earning a small nod from Junko in return while Ai sighed.

 “In all honesty...no.” Ai told their fearless leader. “If the company had made any calendars, it was on their end not ours...although…Hey! Sakura, you wouldn’t happen to…” But Sakura was already shaking her head.

 “I wasn’t much of a collector when I was alive. If there was a calendar, I’m the wrong person to ask.” Everyone turned to Junko, who seemed thoughtful for a moment before shrugging.

“No...I was too busy with tours. At best, maybe autographs and signed records but that’s about it.”

Saki turned to Lily. “And you, Shrimp?”

“Not a clue.” The little girl looked at Yugiri. “What about you, Yugi? Did you ever get a calendar of your own?”

“Did they even make those in her time?” Saki ventured to ask, earning a slap in the leg from Ai.

“She’s not that old!”

Ignoring their leader’s comment, Yugiri placed a delicate hand over her mouth, thinking. Finally, she shook her head. “I fear I did not...I do recall a few artists that requested that I model for them but…”

Saki sighed, sitting up. “So...we’re stuck. Shades has no clue and neither do we.”

The girls were silent, even Tae, who had stopped walking around to stare at the others.

And then, Sakura was snapping her fingers as if an idea had suddenly taken hold. Everyone turned to stare at their friend with a mixture of confusion and interest. “How about we make a list? About things we like and whatnot?” she asked them. “We’re bound to come up with something if we work together.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” Ai said after a while. “Let’s get some pen and paper. We ought to come up with some ideas by the end of the day.”

* * *

A day later, the girls had finally settled for a theme; they had the eras they’ll work with, the ideas for the pictures they’ll take for the months, etc. All that they needed was their manager’s approval and they were good to go. Still, Ai had suggested they come up with a backup idea if Kotaro went all crazy on them and said no.

“A-are you sure you guys want to go with that as a theme?” Junko asked nervously for what seemed to be the tenth time that day. The girls were back in the dungeon, waiting for their charismatic (crazy) manager to arrive.

Ai sent her a smile while next to her Saki shrugged. “Come on, girl. We talked about this. We all agreed. Besides, it sounds better than that skeleton nonsense the idiot came up with on a whim.”

“But…”

“Let’s just worry about Kotaro right now,” Ai told her gently. “That guy probably isn’t as broke as he would like us to believe. He wouldn’t have suggested the calendar if he wasn’t willing to put some money aside for it. Just relax.”

“What if he says no, though?” Junko asked her, sounding more than a little anxious. Saki responded with a grin.

“If he says no to both options we’ll follow his stupid theme...but he’s the one we’re skinning first.”

 //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

As it turned out, Junko’s worries had been for nought. Kotaro had liked their idea for the theme, surprisingly enough.

To be fair, so did most of the girls and despite her worries, Junko had been so happy when Lily and Sakura suggested it.

Since the girls had come from different eras, why not use that as a theme? After much debate, which was just Saki and Ai arguing about whether to include this year or the other, Sakura and Lily suggested that they use the Showa and Meiji eras as the themes.

Sakura had pointed out that those two eras would compare and contrast pretty well, certain historical events notwithstanding.

(Junko and Yugiri were quick to notice the similarity by two numbers but Saki told them they were seeing things with a big grin)

Now they had an idea, but they needed more, so the girls began to plan out scenes, making barely recognizable sketches, stopping Tae from eating the paper and so on. They had even included Kotaro’s silly idea about the skeletons for October because according to Lily, Halloween was a big deal in Japan nowadays.

Once Kotaro approved, it was just a matter of getting clothes and things in order.

For the Showa scenes, Saki had suggested they use the playground outside. “It’s close, and well, we can avoid accidents if something happens.”

As for the Meiji scenes, Kotaro had suggested they use a screen and a few tricks with the background to make it work. He had a few things back in the attic that would do.

Clothes had been rented, a few things had been bought and the girls were just about ready for the photo shoot.

 


	7. Twelve Months of Death and Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Managed to get this one done in time! So, here it is...also, I'm changing the update schedule for every Friday instead of Monday, unless I finished a chapter earlier, of course...although I might be stuck making corrections and fixing mistakes before posting.
> 
> But updates will be now on Fridays.
> 
> See you next time!

**7 / Twelve Months of Death and Time**

**...** **_ichigatsu_ **

Time is cruel, Junko realized. It moves too slow, too fast. There was always time, there was always no time. More time, more time, more time, no time, no time. It was always that way. There was always no time, more time, no time to beg, no time to die.

Junko had thought she had all the time in the world, no matter how fast it was going. Concerts, television appearances, you name it. Her schedule was packed. She had time, she had drive.

She also had not been dead.

Nowadays, Junko Konno was dead...and pretending she was not. It was complicated.

She had been so excited about the calendar, about revisiting the Showa era that she had forgotten that she was dead. She had forgotten for a moment that she was back then, not now, and had gotten lost in her thoughts. Not anymore, though.

Now, as she stared at the old dress, she realized it looked familiar. Junko remembered wearing a similar dress before. It was for one of her shows, she remembers now. One of her shows, so long ago.

Nearby, Ai Mizuno fixed her own dress, so similar to Junko’s, so similar to the past. The younger idol was a bit unsure, frowning a bit at the strange style, as if something was wrong with it.

Too long, too short.

(but time had been too short for Junko Konno, too short)

The Showa era idol let herself smile as she looked at her friend. “It isn’t too short, is it?” It was a modest, one piece dress, long sleeves, the colar a little too loose around the neck, a reminder.

Ai just laughed, shaking her head.

“It’s either that or I’m too tall.” Ai was wearing an identical dress to Junko’s, hers blue in color. A jet black jacket hugged her shoulders, courtesy of Saki, who told her to look a little dangerous for the camera much to Ai and Junko’s shared amusement.

In contrast, Junko’s dress was a light gray, and unlike the dangerous Mizuno (Saki’s idea), Junko wore the jacket properly. It was a rather nostalgic look. She remembered wearing a similar outfit during a show that aired on the tube.

(but no one was watching the tube looking for Junko Konno, who was dead)

Junko must have spaced out for a few seconds because next thing she knew, she felt someone grab unto her hand. Turning, she spotted the worried face of Ai. “You okay, Junko?”

The young woman couldn’t help the sad smile that decorated her lips; the mirror showed her how much time she had missed when she turned to stare. “I suppose,” she began, still looking at the mirror, grabbing a bit of the dress with her free hand before letting it fall. “It’s...just...well...it's just…” Junko trailed off, not knowing what to say, her eyes on the mirror. Ai turned to stare at their reflection. Two girls. Two lost girls, lost to time.

(time didn’t stop for the dead)

But then, Ai’s reflection smiled, still grabbing Junko’s hand and nodded. “I see...it is too short, isn't it?”

For a moment, Junko doesn’t know how to respond but the next, she giggles. Ai laughs with her, still holding unto her hand. “Yes,” Junko remarks, unshed tears on her eyes and a smile in her face. “I guess it is a little too short...a little...and I...I suppose I missed them.”

(Time, time, All gone, gone)

Ai nodded, her smile soft. She understood.

The two girls stood there, holding hands, watching their reflection, watching time. Tears fell from Junko’s eyes, small, tiny little tears that ruined a bit of the makeup but Ai was there to wipe them away. Junko leaned her head on Ai’s shoulder, and just watched her reflection.

They stayed there, in front of the mirror, waiting, waiting.

And then, Kotaro’s yelling filled the room, ordering them to get ready, that it was there turn. The girls blinked, fixed their makeup, covered their tears and stared at their reflection one last time.

Ai still held unto Junko’s hand, whispering, “Don’t worry...I got your back.”

(time was too short and Junko missed the old days, yet this new life, this present, she wouldn’t trade it for the world)

**_...nigatsu_ **

Sakura and Lily watched as Yugiri helped Saki with her hair, the ex-biker trying not to fidget too much.

“...ugh...sis...how much longer?”

“A few more minutes, I’m afraid…”

“Ugh…”

Lily pouted Saki’s way. “Come on, Saki! Stay still! You’re gonna make Yugiri last longer!”

Saki just groaned louder.

Sakura, hidden behind Yugiri and Lily, sighed.

She was still cleaning up the saliva that Tae had left behind when the unawakened zombie had confused Sakura’s hair bun for food, for some reason. Now, she was trying to clean her hair as best as possible, unaware that Tae was behind her, munching on a loose strand of dark pink hair, watching Saki complain the day away.

**_...sangatsu_ **

Tae had behaved quite well when it was time to take the picture.

It was fair to say that was probably because all she had to do was lie down, holding unto Lily and Yugiri’s hands as they lay with her.

Sakura had just shrugged when Saki had pointed at the scene in amazement.

Tae was usually still if she was lying down.

At least she wasn’t trying to eat the camera...no, wait. Tae had almost jumped at Kotaro when he passed by, the courtesan and the child actress holding her back.

Sakura sighed.

**_...shigatsu_ **

Sakura gave her friends an unimpressed stare as she and Yugiri posed for April.

The courtesan leaned against her, looking as charming as ever, a pleasant smile on her face, hair flowing in the wind as the desk fan hit them and the pink petals danced around them before falling gracefully on the floor.  

Her friends tried not to laugh at the expression Sakura was making their way.

“...really?”

Yugiri couldn't help the giggle that escaped her as the rest of the band, minus a confused Tae, laughed.

**_...gogatsu_ **

Junko stared at her reflection, slightly unsure, tugging the sleeves of the leather jacket down, as if wanting it to stretch longer than it needed to. The jacket was a little too tight. Maybe. Junko wasn’t really used to wearing leather, even when she had performed when alive.

Glancing at the mirror, she noticed Ai and Sakura trying to stop Tae from biting into her leather jacket. Then she was seeing Saki, coming closer and closer until they both stood there facing the mirror, leather darker than the night.

Their leader looked surprisingly intimidating with those jacket and jeans, not that Saki had never not been intimidating. She was friendly, alright. And she had also been the co-leader of an infamous biker gang. Or rather, Junko still remembers Saki knocking out poor Mr. Go with that kick. Maybe that was it.

“How you holding there, girl? Too much leather for your tastes?”

Junko smiled. “I’m alright...it’s just...is this really what you wore when you were in Dorami…? Leather…?”

Saki chuckled, shaking her head. “Nah. You remember those long ass jackets we wore for that performances with the uniforms?” The former idol nodded. “That’s what we wore...most of the time. Well, I sure as hell didn’t. Neither did Reiko nor most of the girls, but a few of them, that’s what they wore. School uniforms under the jackets.”

“Ah…”

“Besides, the whole leather business is from this movies Shades showed us...trust me, we didn’t wear this much leather when I was in Dorami. Hell, neither did Reiko’s kid.” Saki eyed herself in the mirror. “We look badass enough. Maybe if this idol stuff doesn’t end up working we can hit the road,” she put an arm around Junko, grinning, “what do ya say, Junko? Ready to bust some heads?”

Junko laughed, a small blush on her cheeks. “Sakura wouldn’t approve…” Saki chuckled.

“Hah! Wouldn’t really doubt it for a mi _ー_ ”

“Ah! Tae!” The reflections of Sakura and Ai struggled against Tae, who had the leather in her mouth and was biting hard. “Don’t you’ll _ー_ ” _RIPPPPP!_

Saki and Junko turned away from the mirror, eyes wide, as Tae ripped the sleeve of her leather jacket off and began to eat it. Ai’s eyebrow twitched as she stared at her friend while Sakura, standing next to her, placed a hand on her forehead and began to shake her head.

“O-oh…”

“...Huh.”

Sakura with some help from Saki and Junko, who rushed towards her, managed to stop Tae in time before she started biting unto Ai’s own leather jacket next.

**_...rokugatsu_ **

Sakura and Lily finished the photoshoot without problems…except when a small drizzle caught them by surprise right in the middle of it, washing their makeup off.

The two of them quickly applied makeup again after the rain had stopped; Kotaro had tried to use that waterproof spray (for shoes) on them before Saki kicked him.

**_...shichigatsu_ **

Yugiri examined the garments she wore with slight interest; they looked pretty enough, seemed fashionable enough but they confused her.

Fashions moved, so did time. How odd that they seemed to walk hand in hand.

(how many heads had to roll for that one?)

The courtesan sometimes let her mind wander. It was safe. It was comforting. She used to let her mind wander during particular hard days; she had been taught all her life to be in control, to satisfy, to be elegant, to not question, to go with the flow. But, sometimes it was too difficult to keep on pretending.

Yugiri wasn’t a fool.

She had been raised to be a courtesan, nothing else mattered.

And yet, she was bothered. What was it? What could it be?

(it wasn’t the clothes, it wasn’t the fact she was dead and had been brought back, it wasn’t the fact that she had lost her head)

Yugiri let out a small hum, unsure.

Fashion. Fashion.

Was it really fair for fashion (time) to change so fast?

“Yugiri?”

Was it the fashions or was it the ever changing tides that was time?

“Yugiri…?”

The courtesan suddenly blinked, barely taking note of Sakura standing nearby, her red eyes looking at her with concern. “Is...is something wrong?”

(time was wrong)

 _Be in control,_ Yugiri’s thoughts whispered, _don’t think, just be._ Old teachings seemed to echo in her thoughts, telling her, teaching her...this is a life of vice, of pleasure.

(get used to it)

And Sakura was still there, standing, worried, echoing a different set of words, offering her comfort that she could not find among others of her ilk. But Yugiri’s mind was already travelling somewhere else.

Nothing was wrong. Her head was still attached, the stitches and decay had been covered by the makeup and it was fine. Her death had been quick. Yugiri could still remember the fear and the struggle that in the end amounted to nothing. For Sakura, she couldn’t really say the same; the scar in the middle seemed to be the only thing holding the younger woman’s head from splitting open, the small little stitches in her legs were barely noticeable but the bandage in her arm, the bandages in her legs...so close to…

Had Sakura suffered? Had her death been as swift as hers when the time came?

And yet, that wasn’t what was wrong and she let Sakura know so, with a small smile and a nod.

“Do not worry. Nothing is wrong...I was just...thinking…” It was obvious Sakura didn’t believe her, if that raised eyebrow was any indication. _Change the subject...distract….be in control._ “Styles are forever changing, are they not?” Sakura blinked at the question, unsure of what to think before she glanced to the side, shrugging and then, she smiled. It was a nervous sort of smile, the kind Sakura would offer if there was something bothering her but couldn’t express herself well.

Still, she played along with Yugiri’s distraction. “Well...I suppose they do. Junko’s probably more used to these types of dresses than we are...maybe even Saki but she’s not really into fashion.” Yugiri turned away from Sakura, distracting herself in the mirror and that’s when she caught her fellow zombie’s reflection; hands behind her back, looking unsure. “...but that’s not it, is it?” Yugiri blinked again, eyeing the girl behind her through the mirror. Then, she smiled... _go with the flow._..and shook her head.

“Ah, forgive me, Lady Sakura...I was just letting my mind wander...a silly habit of mine, I suppose.”

“Are...are you sure…?”

“I am sure.”

(time wasn’t)

And yet, Sakura wasn’t so sure. She stood there, still, unsure of whether to keep on questioning her or move on. Yugiri knew that Sakura wouldn’t let the matter rest. She was so different from the girls back in the brothel...so different from her old manager...so different from her.

“ACK!”

Sakura almost jumped. Yugiri barely reacted.

They heard Saki struggling with Tae to “get off of the camera, damn it!” Sakura turned back once, and then turned back to the smiling Yugiri, who seemed to be amused by recent events. Sakura gave her a nervous smile and muttered, “Umm...excuse me...Tae!”  And she was gone, allowing Yugiri to breathe a sigh of relief.

Be elegant.

Be in control.

(you’re dead)

**_...hachigatsu_ **

“Where did you even get that bag of plastic leaves?”

“Tatsumi had them in the attic...along with the sakura petals.”

“Hurry up! Tae’s trying to eat the darn things again!”

**_...kugatsu_ **

Lily made a small twirl, grinning from ear to ear as she admired her sailor uniform, Yugiri and Sakura watching her with matching smiles. Sakura herself was fixing her hair into a ponytail as she watched. Behind them, Junko smiled shyly admiring her uniform in the mirror while Ai, looking on, complimented her on something or the other.

Saki watched her friends, a big grin on her face. “I guess it’s back to school again, huh?” she asked Tae, who just groaned in response.

**_...jūgatsu_ **

Romero let out a delighted bark as he sat on Lily’s lap.

The girls were all in their casual clothes, their makeup wiped off. They were all cuddling together in a big pile of pillows, Junko, Ai and Yugiri in the back, Lily in the middle, and in the front, Sakura, Tae and Saki.

Kotaro stood nearby, trying to find the right angle to take the picture from.

Romero barks again. _Hurry up_ , he seemed to be saying.

“Do you think we look dead enough?” Saki asked, turning towards Sakura who just looked quizzically back at her.

“How much more dead do you want us to be?” The ex-biker sent Sakura an unamused stare before she began grinning. Sakura didn’t have time to react before Saki reached over and separated her head from her body. “HEY!”

Saki turned to Yugiri, Sakura’s head in hand. “Big sis! Catch! Quick!”

“Saki!” the head cried, landing on Yugiri’s arms, the courtesan smiling in amusement all the way.

Lily, suddenly inspired, turned to whisper at Ai. The former idol looked a bit confused before she sighed and detached her own head and gave it to Junko to hold.

Romero barked again.

_Hurry! Hurry!_

“Will you stupid zombies stop moving around!?” Kotaro yelled, pointing the camera towards them. “Stay still!”

Sakura just resigned herself to her fate, her body crossing its arms over her chest while her head glared at Saki, who tried to control her laughter. Ai’s head just sighed, a smile on her lips, her body still as a stone. Lily and Junko giggled. Yugiri held Sakura’s head close as Romero barked.

“Woof!”

**_...jūichigatsu_ **

“...are we really doing this again?”

“What’s wrong, Egghead? Don’t like your namesake flying around?”

“That’s not it…Tae is eating them off of the floor.”

“She’s been eating the little plastics since the beginning, why is it bothering you now?”  

“Because she’s trying to eat the desk fan this time.”

“Whoa! Hey! Hey! Shrimpy, Sis! Stop that girl!”

**_...jūnigatsu_ **

Sakura let out a sigh, falling into her futon.

It had been a long day.

Tae had lost her head again, courtesy of little Romero. They had chased the pooch all over the room before finally retrieving their friend’s head. Said friend had started biting things again but at least the camera was safe.

Still…

Sakura glanced at Yugiri, the older woman busy brushing her hair; the others were already getting ready for bed, Ai and Junko were getting up from the couch talking about tomorrow’s practice, Saki and Lily were having a conversation about what the calendar would look like on the side, already settled on their futons and Tae had already fallen asleep on hers.

The pink haired zombie frowned slightly as she continued watching Yugiri, recalling that particular interaction when they were taking the pictures for July. Sakura couldn’t really pinpoint what had bothered her when she had seen Yugiri looking so lost, or maybe she had just imagined it. But Yugiri had seemed so...the zombie couldn’t really explain it. The courtesan had obviously been thinking about something.

Was it because of the calendar, maybe?

Had it awakened past memories that Yugiri would rather they remained buried?

Sakura preferred not to think too much of the past. It brought back bad memories, brought back reminders of how her bad luck had ruined her days. Not everything was bad she knew but when it came to Yugiri, when it came to everyone else, who could say.

For Junko, and to a lesser extent Saki, time had moved a little too fast but it had stopped at a place that still felt familiar to them; for Yugiri, time had moved too fast, too far out of her reach. Sakura and Ai had lost ten years, Lily just seven, Saki over twenty, Junko going to forty but Yugiri had lost more than a century.

Tae, no one was so sure, but she was probably up there with Saki or Junko in years lost. Not that the older woman cared. She wasn’t conscious to care beyond her friends.

Sakura sighed, turning her head away as Yugiri finally finished brushing her hair.

The zombie recalled the massages Yugiri had offered a while back, when she was feeling down, even if it had been a group effort, Sakura appreciated the care she gave her. It was only fair to return the favor, right?

She’ll be here if Yugiri needed to talk.

She knew they all would.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

A week later, after one of their mini concerts was over, the girls were rather shocked to see the calendars fly off the table in less than an hour.

They had sold better than anyone expected, forcing their manager to print even more for futures events under the guise of “fan demand”. As a plus, the photos that had decorated the calendar were sold separately to the calendar on the next event. They sold twice as fast, earning them a considerable boost in cash by the end of a third concert before the month was over.

And somewhere out in Saga, in a small apartment, in a modest house, in a clinic and in a dark room, the past watched the present, smiling, crying and laughing at the familiar faces that stared back.


	8. Rain in a Bucket

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finished this one early! Enjoy! And see you next update!

**8 / Rain in a Bucket**

Sunday morning was break time, or so, Kotaro had told them.

“Seeing as we don’t have any events planned until next month, you corpses are allowed to take Sundays off! And just Sundays! JUST SUNDAY! Sunday is break time! Break time, get it!?”

And they did get it, especially after Saki punched him in the gut as thanks for letting them know.

It wasn’t like they weren’t already taking breaks, considering the whole thing with Kotaro and those rumors he had been hearing about them lately. 

(the rumors hadn’t really been bad, all things considered; it was just some fans worried about their idols...and maybe give or take a few creeps) 

Sure, they didn’t really take breaks every day, maybe twice a week and even then, they had been restricted by their meager allowances every time they went out. Not that the girls needed money to have a good time but it helped having some around anyway. 

For now, the girls had all decided to spend their Sunday in the house and laze around; they could hear some tunes on the radio, maybe even catch a few radio dramas from a channel Junko had found a few days ago (mainly reruns from popular series from the 90s to early 2000s), read a book or just take a few catnaps. 

Lily and Sakura still lamented not buying that board game they had seen on their last outgoing and Saki had just grumbled that she wouldn’t mind having a tv in the room or better yet, go to the arcade and have some fun like the good ol’ days. But for today, their break time Sunday was spent at home. 

The first order of the day was breakfast. Everyone was in the kitchen watching Sakura fix up their meal with some help from Lily and Yugiri. Ai and Junko were sitting near the counter, as far away from the stove and Sakura while Saki kept Tae busy, making sure the older woman wouldn’t jump on the cook and her helpers before the meal was ready.  

To pass time while they waited for the food to be ready, Saki had begun asking the her friends if they had any embarrassing stories to tell. 

In order to get the conversation going, the ex-biker told them about the time she crashed into a stop sign. 

“Couldn’t really figure out how to get it working, at first...it was a hand-me down piece of shit,” Saki recalls, grinning fondly at an old memory. Sitting next to her, Ai let out a small laugh with Saki joining her seconds later. Junko only smiled, while nearby Lily let out a few giggles, becoming so distracted from the cooking that she had decided to sit down and recover. Sakura had just shaken her head once, smiling while Yugiri let out a small chuckle; the tamagoyaki was almost done. 

“We had gotten the pair of them cheap, too,” Saki went on, once the laughter died down. “Bought the bikes from an old junkyard on the outskirts of Karatsu. They still worked, surprisingly enough.” Ai grinned at her. 

“So, I’m guessing the headache happened after you bought them?” 

Saki nodded at Ai. “Darn thing wouldn’t start up. Reiko’s started just fine. Mine, well, it took more than a few turns of the key. Finally, the thing starts. But as soon as we take them for a ride, it stops.” Saki shook her head. “I’m busy getting annoyed at it and Reiko’s stopping behind me...and then, it starts up and me, being an idiot, was holding the clutch...and well,  _ zoom...crash _ !” Saki mimicked the sound of a crash, slapping both hands together producing a loud clap. “...straight into a stop sign!” she finished with a grin. “On the plus side, bike worked pretty well after that. Give or take a few crashes along the way.”  

(and then Saki blew it and herself to pieces) 

“Maybe it needed a good crash to get going!” Lily offered, giggling. 

Saki just let out another laugh. “We never knew what had happened that first time...man…” The ex-biker shook her head. “Reiko almost crashed into me, laughing all the way.” The group let out a few more laughs and groans, courtesy of Tae. “So, what about you guys? Any stories about crashing into stop signs you’ll like to share?” 

Yugiri spoke up first, putting plates nearby so Sakura could begin placing the finished tamagoyaki. “Hmm...I am afraid that I have not much of a story to tell...about crashing, I mean.” She winked at the girls sitting at the counter, earning a good laugh from Saki and a smile from all the others, except Tae. “I do, however, recall a particular event...perhaps not embarrassing for me, but for a patron.” 

“Sounds like juicy gossip, Sis,” Saki remarked, glancing at Lily and a blushing Junko. “You sure the kids are ready to hear this story of yours?” Lily pouted at Saki while Junko looked even more embarrassed, while next to her, Ai gave her hand a small squeeze, smiling softly, a blush beginning to form on her bandaged cheeks. 

Yugiri smiled with gentle amusement. “It is alright...we rarely engaged in intercourse so early in the day.” Sakura let out a groan next to her, offering the courtesan an exasperated look. 

“Yugiri! Phrasing!” 

The courtesan laughed along with their leader while Lily raised an eyebrow and Junko blushed harder next to her. Ai just sighed. Tae groaned again, eyeing the meal that Sakura was preparing with anticipation. 

“It happened in the afternoon, if I remember correctly...this particular patron was a regular. He would ask for the services of any girl that caught his fancy, and that day, it was my turn to serve him…” Sakura glanced at Yugiri once, before placing the finished meal in the plates . “...however, something very curious happened. Apparently, someone else had requested my services earlier in the day. I had not been informed until this patron arrived.” Yugiri shrugged. “It was a rare thing, really. I was allowed to refuse clients, at the manager’s  _ suggestion _ of course, but for this to happen...well, it was a rare thing. I would have been informed either way.” 

“Now, this has happened,” the courtesan went on; Sakura moved towards the rice, checking to see if it was done, a strange look on her face. “The patron is distressed...hmm, perhaps distressed is probably the wrong word to describe his behavior at his finding out I wouldn’t serve him.” 

“He was pissed, huh?” Saki asked, whistling slightly. Yugiri answered her with a nod. Sakura’s gaze hardened as she began serving the rice but the only one that noticed was Tae, who cocked her head to the side. 

Meanwhile, Yugiri continued her story, oblivious to Sakura’s changing expressions. 

“Oh, certainly...but alas, his anger did not last him long for as soon as he began yelling, demanding my services, the mysterious patron appeared from the manager’s room. She didn’t seem too happy to see the man.” Sakura suddenly blinked next to her, while the others offered her inquisitive looks. 

“Wait…” Ai began, eyes wide. “Your new client was a woman!?” 

“That could happen?” Lily asked, mystified while Junko just buried her blushing face with her hands, shaking her head slightly. 

“Very rarely, Lady Lily.” Yugiri explained to the younger girl. “It was mostly the men that sought other men...but it did happen. The manager didn’t care for gender so long as they paid and kept quiet about it.” Yugiri shrugged. “As for the story, well...as soon as my new client stepped into the light, so to speak, the man stopped screaming, his red face turned blue with shock. It appeared to all of us that the two knew each other quite well...and how could they not? They were husband and wife, after all.” 

“WHAT!?” 

Sakura almost slipped when cutting some dried squid to put at the side of the tamagoyaki, while everyone else, minus Tae, stared at the courtesan in shock. 

Yugiri hummed. “Oh, but the woman was truly a sight to behold. She was livid.” 

“I’ll say…” Ai murmured, as Junko removed her hands from her face, looking a little less red on the cheeks. 

“We later learned that the woman had disguised herself as a man and requested my services to make sure her husband could not. She had revealed herself before her husband could cause any damage with his temper, and before he could defend himself or offer excuses, the woman was unto him, holding tight unto his ear and angrily saying that he had abandoned his children to be with whores.” Sakura’s gaze hardened again, and again, only Tae noticed. “She then proceeded to drag the man out of the brothel while the rest of us watched...it was quite a scene; a small woman wearing a fine men's kimono, dragging a man begging for forgiveness by the ear.” 

(people hadn’t stopped talking about that incident for days to come; had they talked about Yugiri’s murder with such fascination days later?) 

“The next day, the woman returned. No disguises, no blubbering husband. She had returned to apologize to the owner for the scene she and her husband had created. She also offered to pay the manager so long as he kept her husband out of the brothel.” Yugiri smiled. “In reality, the manager had just decided to prohibit the husband from ever stepping into the brothel...impressed by the woman’s strength…” Although, Yugiri knew that wasn’t true. Apparently the woman was related to a government official that could bring trouble to the brothel if the manager didn’t keep the husband away. The woman paying out of her pocket was just a farce, and all the girls knew it. Not that they were complaining. It had always been this way. “It was always a good story to laugh at with some tea,” the courtesan finished, smiling. 

“Damn! Hahaha! Talk about getting caught with your pants down!” Saki laughed. Lily giggled, shaking her head while Ai just shook her head with a smile. Junko was smiling too, not looking as red as before. Tae groaned. Sakura had a strange expression on her face but she hid it quickly with a small smile as she began serving the girls. 

“So, who’s next?” Saki asked, turning her eyes towards Junko, who blushed and shook her head. 

“I...I...can’t really think of one, right now…” she offered, shyly. Ai sent Saki a look.  _ Don’t push it, _ the look seemed to be saying. Saki raised her hands in defeat.

“Alright, girl...I’ll believe you.” 

Junko couldn’t help the sigh of relief that escaped her lips, much to the others amusement. 

“Hey, Ai! What about you?” 

Ai shrugged. “Can’t really remember, if I’m honest.” Saki raised an eyebrow, a teasing grin on her face. 

“Really? How convenient…” Ai chuckled. 

“Fine. I guess...I guess losing my limbs during practice for Saga Rock was rather embarrassing.” Saki laughed. “No. Really. I think that might actually trump me slipping during practice that one time…” Ai just wasn’t going to tell them about the banana peel. Junko had laughed for hours when she told her that particular embarrassing story. She wasn’t going to repeat that one again.  

(Ai’s mother had laughed too when she told her about it...stupid Kaoru and her midday snacks...she missed them both) 

“Fair enough, I guess…” Saki turned towards Lily, who was already pouting and shaking her head. 

“I’m not telling!” 

“Geh!? Why not?” 

“Because...!” 

(she died because of facial hair...wasn’t that embarrassment enough?) 

Saki grumbled. It almost seemed a bit unfair, really. But, hey, she had had her laughs. Maybe the Egghead had something to share? 

“Yo! Sakura! And you?”

Sakura blinked at Saki; the plates were finished, tamagoyaki with a side of rice and some dried squid. Tae was already salivating behind her, as the pink haired zombie and Yugiri moved the plates to the nearby table. 

“What?”

“A story, Egghead,” Saki said, rolling her eyes. “Weren’t you paying attention? Junko and Shrimpy are out. Big Sis already told hers and I guess, so did Ai...unless...” she turned to Tae, who was already at her seat in the table, wolfing down the food with gusto only a zombie hungry for brains could exhibit. “Eh...nevermind.”

“Heh...I bet Tae has a lot of stories to tell,” Sakura said, gesturing for the others to come and sit down. “Well...let me think….hmm…”

(her bad luck was everywhere, so what to choose?)

“How about I tell you about the time I lost my umbrella?” 

Saki was already grinning. She had a pretty good idea where this story was heading. “Sure. Knock it out of the park, girl!” 

Sakura smiled a bit, before sighing. “Well...I was about nine years old...and well, before leaving for school...we-I...I noticed some dark clouds overhead.” Yugiri took quick notice of the odd phrasing, while the others seemed to have ignored it as Sakura went on with her story. “So, I’m thinking...I better bring my umbrella with me...in case...uh, in case it starts to rain. Except, I worried for nothing. You see, the clouds had brought a lot of wind their way so…” 

“...they were gone once you got out of school?” Ai offered, getting a small nod in return. 

“It was clear. Windy, but clear. And w-uh...and it was rather warm, too.” There it was again. Perhaps nervousness, Yugiri thought as she took her seat next to Lily. “It’s already after school and it was hot that day despite all the wind. Uh...and well, Ge-I mean, I decided to get the umbrella opened…” There! That odd break in her words; Sakura was a pretty fast speaker when she wanted to. The only reason Yugiri had even noticed her fumbling words was because she was good at noticing things, it came with the job. If you didn’t notice the slurred way a client spoke, noticed their predatory gaze until it was too late, you were done for. 

But Sakura didn’t seem to be in any danger. She was fine. Maybe embarrassed by the story she was telling. Maybe that was it. 

Sakura shook her head once before she took a seat next to Saki, grabbing her chopsticks and playing a bit with her food as she went on with her story. “Next thing I know, this big gust of wind blows it out of my hands...so, there I am...chasing after the umbrella...and when I finally caught it...I...I get wet.” 

The ex-biker let out an unladylike snort, taking a bite out of the tamagoyaki. “Fell into a canal, did ya?” Sakura just pouted at that. 

“If that had happened, it would have been less embarrassing.” 

“Eh? Whatcha mean?” 

Sakura suddenly took a deep breath, as if preparing herself to tell a dark secret. Yugiri took note. That was a strange reaction. How curious.  

“The umbrella landed...in the back lot of a local flower shop...they grew their own merchandise on the back...it was usually opened to the public so they could browse around, pick flowers, vegetables, you name it...so, it lands there, right in the middle of it all...and then, the sprinklers suddenly turn on as soon as I get hold of it…” For a moment, everyone just stares at her, dumbfounded by what they just heard, well, almost everyone. Tae is busy licking her plate clean. 

And then, Saki was laughing. Hard and loud, spitting a bit of egg into her plate. Ai chuckled while Junko let out a small giggle and Lily joined Saki with a loud laugh of her own. Yugiri just looked confused, unsure of what had just happened. Eventually, Lily recovered long enough to explain what a sprinkler was to Yugiri before Sakura went on with her story. 

“The sprinklers were on a timer,” Sakura recalled, letting out a loud sigh. “So, the moment I reach for the umbrella they turned on and soaked me from head to toe...I ended up getting a cold a few days later.” 

(she was fine before, she was fine before, she didn’t want to miss the play but she was cold)

“Oh man! Egghead…” Saki began, wiping a small tear that had formed in her eye. “What the heck!” And she laughed again. 

“Yeah, laugh it up,” Sakura muttered sourly. “...and that wasn’t even the first time it would happen…” Saki laughed even louder again, accompanied by a grinning Ai and Lily, Junko and Yugiri offering little smiles of amusement. Tae just stared at them as if they were crazy, plate empty and stomach full. Sakura just glanced at Saki with an annoyed look before sighing, eyes turning towards her plate, suddenly unfocused before she shook her head and started with her food, trying to smile but failing. 

Everyone else confused it for embarrassment, as Saki patted her shoulder, grinning from ear to ear, assuring her that it wasn’t so bad. 

But Yugiri had noticed the difference. Noticed how that smile seemed forced, noticed how her fingers quivered as she held unto the chopsticks, noticed how she was trying so hard not to cry. 

(had there been something more to the story?) 

The story seemed to have upset Sakura somehow, and Yugiri was now regretting that smile, the silent laughter she had echoed in her head after Lily explained to her what had happened to Sakura and those sprinklers.

There was more to the story, it seemed, more than what Sakura was willing to share.

The girls, herself included and perhaps Tae too, rarely talked about their families, rarely talked about their past without sugarcoating a few details here and there. If a story did end up getting out, it was usually due to recent events that were out of their control; Ai’s fear, Junko’s concerns, Saki and her old gang, Lily and her father, Sakura and her terrible luck.

It was rare for any of the girls to talk about their past, about their families without all the problems they could bring. Yugiri understands why they do it. She understands why Saki doesn’t talk about the real and terrifying aspects of gang life, why Ai doesn’t talk about her old friends and family, why Lily didn’t want to talk about her father, why Junko doesn’t talk about the past she left behind, why Yugiri doesn’t talk about the brothels and about her death. 

(it was better this way) 

Yugiri gently places a delicate finger near her stitches, making sure to not catch attention as a conversation breaks out around the table. Her head is still in place. The courtesan sighs, as low as possible to not bring attention to herself before looking at Sakura and smiles. Sakura is giving Saki that unimpressed look again, the ex-biker making faces at her before laughing. 

It's then she decides to talk to Sakura. 

A slap just won’t do it this time...perhaps, but Yugiri decides not to risk it. Sakura needs to talk and Yugiri will be here to listen; she had always been a good listener. 

* * *

Eleven years later and the neighborhood was still the same.

Same houses, probably same neighbors, too. Some of those houses were probably empty. Owners were dead, had moved on. Whatever.

The house was still there, as if it hadn’t even aged. That stupid tree was still there in the front, blocking half of the damn house behind branches and leaves. The car parked by the side was different, compact, two seats. The curtains on the window were different, too. And there’s been some remodeling going on in the upper floor, an extra room for a studio, he guesses.

He still remembers where his old room used to be. Remembers hers, too. He can still remember running to her room during a particular loud storm; it was the thunder and the lightning, he recalls and she was there, holding unto him until it all went away. She had been scared too, silly girl.

He blinks back the tears, wishing for a cigarette. 

It’s too many memories at once. 

(and he’s out of smokes) 

He turns away from the familiar house but then, he’s facing the street now. It's a small little piece, common on these kinds of neighborhoods. It’s almost familiar to a few streets back in Florida. Big, gray, wet. They look almost identical, he decides. 

But then again, this street is a hell street. 

It kills all that dare cross it.

(a lie)

But it's true. It killed a young girl on 2008, he remembers well.

(an accident, stupid girl was stupid)

He remembers the nightmares after it all happened. He had been upset, seeing ghosts that weren’t there. Hearing screams that no one else could hear.

A car. A girl. Glass. Blood. Screams. Glass, glass, glassー

Screw you, hell street.

And he shudders. He’s being stupid, he knows. He needs to smoke, needs to wash it all away with tobacco to sour the pain away.

He tries not to think of the past. Tries not to think of the tiny little pieces of glass that still lay there on hell street, forgotten by time, painted red.

The young man turns to the old house.

It had been sold just two years after the accident. The old man didn’t live here anymore. And she...she didn’t live here, either. She couldn’t then, couldn’t now. She was never coming back.

So he turns and walks away, fingers snatching the flyer from his pocket, blue eyes staring at the girl with the frozen smile. Blue stares back at blue, competing on who blinks first.

(she would always let him win) 

Frozen smile. Ashes, ashes. That’s what she slept on now. That’s where she lived in. Ashes. That’s where the girl that didn’t live in that old house lived now, in the ashes that remained. 

“...let’s go,” he whispers to no one, pocketing the flyer and not looking back.


	9. Cradle the Rock-n-Roll It

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I think I might not even bother with Fridays if I keep uploading early like this. :) I had this chapter ready a while back, figured it would be fair to post it early.
> 
> Next update might be early too, depending on how much I get done with the next chapter. For now, enjoy! See you next time!

**9 / Cradle the Rock-n-Roll It**

Papers lay scattered over Okoba's desk, a bottle of sake on the side, half empty, headache incoming.

Days ago, Okoba could fairly admit he was going insane. Insane for truth, insane for answers. He had been so determined to find something, anything about Franchouchou and its members.

What he had found out surprised him, confused him, made him grab the sake and down it in one gulp. An irrational part of him blamed the damn girls and the dead for the recent headaches and the large amounts of alcohol intake he had subjected himself to days ago.

It wasn't their fault.

He was drunk. He was irritable.

He was also sure that something was wrong.

Franchouchou was made out of doppelgangers of dead people. Dead people! Girls dancing and singing with faces of the dead and only he had noticed!

At least, he hoped.

He wouldn't have been surprised to find a topic, hidden among the hundreds that existed on those forums talking about Franchouchou, wondering, asking, theorizing on why those girls looked like famous people. They were probably drunk right now, like he was. Heh. That felt good to know. He probably wasn't the only one going insane out there.

(he would be truly disappointed, however...most of the fans in those forums hadn't really made a connection, and if they had, they had shrug it off or perhaps someone out there had noticed but didn't really care or perhaps they did, unsure of what to think but that wouldn't be a problem until months later)

But for now, he was nursing a headache and he still felt he had work to do. His little vacation was set to end by Monday, so he still had two days to work.

Okoba turned to the three remaining girls, Konno, Mizuno and Hoshikawa.

He drank the rest of the sake, opened a new bottle and got to work.

* * *

Takeo let out a laugh as he watched the television; it was one of Lily's old shows, about a group of friends that got into all sorts of adventures and that included a talking cat for some reason or the other. He had a whole stack of DVDs at the ready, all containing the shows and movies Lily had starred in, very few had some other shows, shows he and Lily used to watch when they had time. Those he hadn't had the heart to destroy, unlike the television. Those he kept, hidden, away from sight and mind. But now, he had pulled them out of the box, all of them, stacked them neatly next to the newly purchased television that was still smaller than he was tall.

Takeo chuckled.

He had been doing that a lot recently, smiling and watching tv.

Every day, after work, he would come home, put on a DVD, heat up some popcorn and start watching. It didn't matter if the show would get boring after a while, he went on watching, only stopping to replace the DVD with a new one.

And he still had a long stack of DVDs to go, considering he went on a shopping spree a few days after those girls did their performance. Where the girl that looked so much like Lily smiled at him, where that girl that looked so much like his daughter sang to him.

(the song had felt like a goodbye, an apology...Takeo wasn't so sure)

He had gone home, crying, smiling.

A few days later, he had left the house and bought himself a new tv and every single DVD that caught his fancy. He had missed so many new shows, so many soap operas, seasons of cartoons he used to enjoy, documentaries, everything.

One of his coworkers had suggested a streaming site but Takeo had just smiled and said he was fine with the DVDs...so long as they weren't scratch, there was no buffering. His coworker had laughed then, nodding in agreement. "Too true, too true," he told him and wished him luck.

As of now, he had finished at least fifty DVDs, watched some news, talked to the pictures of his daughter and wife, cried, laughed, rinse and repeat. It was an odd sort of catharsis for him.

He had felt so miserable days ago but now, he felt as light as a feather, although his coworkers would disagree.

Takeo hadn't felt like this in a long time, hadn't felt just alright, not great, certainly, just alright.

Television didn't have the answers to everything but it had always been there, in the good days, in the bad days, in the times when Lily was still alive, when his wife was still alive.

(it had also been there during the hard times but Takeo had destroyed that one)

It will be hard, he knew, even as he exchanged the DVD for a new oneーLily's second film, a camping trip gone wrong _ー_ and waited for it to start.

He could pretend those two were by his side, watching, laughing with him. It was hard, but he knew it would get better. He  _would_  get better, even as the tears began anew.

* * *

Lily Hoshikawa was an odd kid, Okoba decided.

She had taken the world by storm at just eight years old, acting in multiple prime-time shows and a few made-for-tv movies here and there. Directors called her a genius, fans adored her.

And she was also dead. Dead at just twelve years old. Heart attack, Okoba remembered reading.

It had been a mess of news; the studio tried to distance themselves from the death, fans were devastated and looking for answers on why their favorite actress had died so young, a few from the nastier side of the tracks began to point fingers at her manager father and the greedy corporations that worked her to death.

That last part had not been a lie, if Okoba was being honest. It happened too often, it happened too much.

Hoshikawa worked a lot. Filming one series first thing in the morning, an hour later the next one, next day booked all day for a movie, interview's at seven, work, work, work. Everything was work. And when one is famous like Hoshikawa had been, work is all you do, all you got.

But the problem with work, Okoba realized as he drank, was that it could consume you, destroy you, make you drink at two in the morning because a group of idols had the faces of the dead.

Hoshikawa was dead.

He was drunk.

The only comfort one could take from Hoshikawa's passing was that at least it was quick.

* * *

Aoi let out a sigh as she set down another box; new apartment, new life, no Ai. It had been the usual for the past eleven years. Nothing had changed. Nothing was ever going to change.

(Ai was still dead)

But now, she was here. She was in Karatsu, Saga...an all-new place, an all-new city.

Tokyo was a busy place, Karatsu, she still wasn't so sure. Aoi would get used to it, though.

The doctor had made some calls a few days after arriving in Karatsu.

Her clinic would need a while to get started, Aoi knew. She had taken out a loan for a building in the center of Karatsu and was just waiting to fill in the necessary paperwork, get the proper equipment, hire a secretary, get so many other things done.

Frankly, Aoi didn't know what she was doing in Saga. She ought to go take these boxes and rip those papers in two, say her goodbyes and high tail it outta there, back to Tokyo. But she didn't. Aoi was already opening boxes and putting their contents in the counter; old medical books, papers she had written, magazines…

Aoi blinked away the tears.

She had thought she had thrown away this old magazine.

It was one of the early ones, the one that had Ai and her old group, Iron Frill, in the cover. They were all there, determined, big grins on their faces. They wore those outfits, the top and the skirt. Aoi never did like them. She complained to Ai enough about them as it was.

"Are you an idol or a piece of meat?" the doctor had asked her once, showing disdain to the outfit like any other sensible mother would, a sensible mother that was not looking forward to the kind of industry her daughter had decided to be part of.

Aoi wasn't blind. Every industry had skeletons in its closet and she had made sure to tell Ai that, even as she filled her application, even as she was selected, even as she performed.

(are you an idol?)

But Ai loved to perform, the same way her mother loved helping others.

Ai and those other girls loved their work, no matter how hard, no matter how strenuous. They practiced, they danced, they sang, and they gave words of encouragement to their fans, gave them hope of a better tomorrow.

Aoi didn't know of anyone that had been touched by Ai's words, she never bothered to look, she didn't want to.

Looking brought back memories, brought back bad thoughts.

(are you a piece of meat?)

The call had come in when she was in the clinic, busy with a young man with a stomach ache; the ache had been a bother for days, he had told her, making him vomit and nauseous. An infection, Aoi had remembered telling him. "You probably have an infection," she had told him. She was going to sent him to the lab to get some tests going, to see if there was something else wrong and then in came in her boss, an old doctor, head of the clinic, accompanied by one of her colleagues.

Aoi had been confused at first; what was wrong? Is something happening? Another emergency?

Instead, her boss just told her that there was an urgent matter he needed to talk to her about, privately, and to let her colleague attend her patient. Aoi was a little concerned but figured it was about another of her patients; she had remembered the patient from a month previous, always complaining and saying that "You're wrong, that's not what's wrong," and this and that, basically the one that said "I know better". Had that woman come to complain? Awfully long time to wait too.

They walked into his office and he told her, he told her plain and simple that Ai was...dead.

She was dead.

Aoi didn't react. Didn't move. Didn't faint.

Doctors are made of harder stuff, Aoi's father had told her once. Doctors were healers, were saviors. You never wanted to hear from a doctor that your child was dead. You never wanted to hear it. But Aoi heard it, loud and clear, unable to believe it.

She had been a little hysterical, wondering if it was some sick joke and if he wanted to fire her to just do it andー

It wasn't a joke and Ai was still dead.

Aoi had seen her. Had seen her body. Dead on arrival, the paramedics said.

The coroner had advised against seeing the body, seeing her child all burned, all dead. But Aoi had seen worse. Had seen shards of glass stuck to an arm, had seen holes on skin, had seen…

...but none of them had been Ai. Ai who was dead, who was burnt, who was dead, who was gone, who was…

Aoi had fainted once she left the coroner to his work.

There was no wake for Ai. There was no point. Her daughter would never be beautiful again, would never be...Aoi couldn't even pretend she was still alive...that she was just sleeping.

And the reporters, oh those reporters, like vultures they came to eat the remains of the dead.

They bothered her, they bothered Kaoru and the girls that remained, everyone.

Ai had become a legend once that bolt of lightning hit her and she was gone.

Reporters couldn't get enough of it. They hounded her, they hounded Kaoru, they hounded the girls.

Aoi had closed herself off on everyone. Kaoru had tried to talk, but Aoi ignored her, heck, she ignored all those other girls from Iron Frill, all the girls who left. Once she was back on her feet, she apologized to Ai's old friends, called herself a fool. They forgave her.

It didn't bring Ai back but it brought some peace to her heart.

And now, here she was, eleven years later, opening a clinic in unknown territory because she was too weak to let go. Because she had been too weak to let go of Ai, the ghost, the legend.

Aoi suddenly got up, tears sliding down her cheeks, down her neck.

She looked at the magazine in her hands again and then stared at the calendar she had bought off the internet.

There was a ghost staring back at her, smiling, grinning.

Aoi decided then and there to find this ghost and put her thoughts to rest, it was the only way to mend what was still broken.

* * *

Ai Mizuno, leader of Iron Frill, circa 2008.

Applied to the ZLS Company when she was just fourteen years old, Mizuno had big dreams and even bigger aspirations.

Okoba admired that kind of determination and Mizuno had plenty of it.

She and the rest of Iron Frill had made a name for themselves, and by 2008 were one of the most popular idol bands in Japan. They were going to be big and then, Mizuno had been struck by lightning and it all collapsed like a big house of cards.

Mizuno became a legend.

What a legend.

Okoba can't help but shake his head.

That's not the kind of legend he'll want.

And a part of him, drunk and drinking, figured that Mizuno didn't want that kind of legend either.

* * *

Reiko leaned closer as she took a look at the magazine; it was twelve o'clock and there was nothing to do. Maria was at school, her husband at work, dishes were done, floors had been cleaned, clothes had been put in the washing machine, etc..

The woman let out a yawn as she flipped the page; the magazine was a motorbike magazine, new edition, Reiko had spotted it while she went out shopping a few days ago and had been interested. She applied for a subscription the next day, her husband grinning at her as he left to work.

"Always a biker, eh?" he had told her, kissing her goodbye.

Her husband knew of her past, knew who she had been. Reiko had stolen his lunch money and he had fallen in love. Not the most romantic love story, but they made do.

Reiko placed a small finger over the picture of a bike, purple in color. It was one of those modern bikes, the ones that raced in racetracks, the ones that looked so...odd. Her bike wouldn't have stood a chance against these things, not even with all the modifications.

But that bike was gone. Left to rot in smoke and ashes. Her old hand-me down piece of shit was gone. And Reiko would have to move on. Mostly, she had to move on because her bike being destroyed had saved her daughter, had saved her stupid little kid.

(she still remembers the explosion, that girl, Two, grinning at her, smiling a familiar smile)

Maria had decided to end the gang a few days later, after that concert, figuring that she didn't have what it took, but not for a lack of trying but for...well, Reiko had a pretty good idea why but she decided not to comment on it.

Her daughter was keeping the jacket though, and that was the end of that particular discussion.

But her daughter didn't understand. Not now, wouldn't ever.

Reiko knew how difficult that part of her life had been. She had been an angry and sad teenager, angry at the world, sad at the injustice, pissed at the wannabe yakuza that called themselves the Oki. They weren't entirely part of all her problems but they certainly helped by making everyone's life a living hell.

Dorami was born out of that anger, out of that desire to crush those that wronged her. Dorami, to an outsider, would have looked like it had been formed out of good intentions. Reiko knew that was a lie. She had been pissed, she had been angry, she had been without purpose and together with her neighbor and best friend, Saki Nikaido, Dorami had been formed and the rest was history.

Saki was like her, every bit as pissed and angry at the world, less restrained, more chaotic. She had a bone to pick with the Oki. They had been antagonizing her old folks, her grandparents, with threats and property damage. At that time, the old couple ran a small little bakery out of their home and the Oki made it a habit to ask for protection money or warn them there would be consequences. Saki had been pretty pissed off but she wasn't an idiot. In a fair fight, she'll break some bones, probably knock a few of them out, but the Oki weren't a walk in the park. With their numbers, she wouldn't be able to do much before reinforcements came and if she was down for the count, nothing would stop them from taking their revenge out on her old folks.

It took a lot of talking and whispering, but finally Reiko and Saki had a plan; Dorami was formed in just two days, Saki recruiting a bunch of girls from nearby schools and Reiko calling on their neighbors, all with a bone to pick with the Oki.

The Oki had been a formidable lot; their leader, named Oki, per the gang's tradition (yeah, sure), was a stinking little shit. He was the new Oki, after the last leader, Oki Kazuma, had died in a fire just a few months ago. It was thanks to Kazuma that the Oki had gotten as big as they had but when you got big, it got to your head, as Reiko would later learn.

The leader never did.

Reiko still has fond memories of their first bout against the Oki. Saki had just marched up to Oki and punched his face in. His nose was broken, and the fighting began. Reiko would break it again, months later, during the final showdown.

Susan, one of the girls that still attended school, had once, as they were having lunch, commented on the oddity of that final fight against the Oki.

It had been a weird fight, all things considered. Most of the Oki had left their leader in the dust, disgusted and demoralized while a few others stopped beating Dorami girls and turned unto each other instead.

Eventually, after much snooping around and to satisfy her own curiosity, Susan finally found out what had happened. The Oki were unsatisfied with their leader. Unlike Kazuma before him, this Oki was like mixing water with oil, incompatible with the rest. He had a temper, he would antagonize certain groups of the Oki, turn them against each other to, in his own words, make them tough. That had just created resentment between the two groups that had formed amongst the gang, those that followed the current Oki and those that followed the burnt one. The gang began to fight over territory, which escalated in full out brawls. It was a surprise that the Oki had lasted as long as it did, and with Dorami finally making calls and crushing their numbers, it didn't take a genius to figure out why that dam finally broke when they came knocking.

The Oki broke apart, the ones that tried to reform were stomped out by Dorami or other local gangs, who had become more formidable the years that the Oki were busy with their own conflicts.

With the Oki out of the game, Reiko and Saki had set their sights on getting their own territory. They started with Karatsu and got to work from their. And Susan, little studious Susan, who swung the bat like a sports league champion, hid with her school uniform in school and passed on any rumors or stories to her boss, allowing Dorami to grow and be feared.

Dorami had started small, like any other gang; the Oki had started small, too.

(and then, a broken nose and an idiot broke them apart)

They stole from local students, drunks that wandered too close to their territories, other local gangs, whether it was at the races or beating them up, it didn't matter. It was the students, however, that had gotten smarter as the days passed, murmuring to their classmates on how to avoid Dorami, whispering of safe havens to hang out, this place over here, this arcade over yonder, that sort of thing. But Susan, Susan with her bat and schoolbag, had already whispered those same words to her boss, so there was no escape.

The only real comfort the students took was that Dorami weren't bloodsucking leeches like the Oki had been. If you didn't have money with you, they let you go, the Oki weren't so merciful...then again, Dorami wasn't really nice if one of them found out you were lying.

As the years passed, Dorami eventually conquered most of Kyushu, pushing out other gangs out of their territory, putting out flames of rebellion that wanted to take form. Eventually, Saki figured that in a few more years, Japan would be a piece of cake to conquer, if Kyushu had been so easy. Reiko had agreed.

They had grown smug, Reiko realized years later.

Dorami weren't a nice group of people; they stole, they threatened, they broke the law. Reiko wasn't going to pretend otherwise. Back then, if you fought Dorami, you were going to lose, those were the rules. Those were the only rules.

But then, in an instant, Reiko quit, followed by Susan with her broken bat, and many others.

(Saki was dead, and she became a housewife)

It was Saki's unceremonious passing that opened Reiko's eyes to her own mortality. Made her fear death, make her fear what she had become for just an instant.

And so, they all moved on.

Most of the girls rejoined society, married, got work, finished school or moved away. Susan, Susan who no longer swung her bat back and forth, hadn't married yet but she continued with her schooling and became a veterinarian after all that hard work. It didn't really surprise Reiko. Susan always did have a soft spot for the little critters...and her headbusting bat.

Reiko still recalled that time where Susan had picked up this poor pooch from the streets; the poor dog had been run over and left to bleed his life away. Susan had taken him to the vet and a few months later, he was part of the gang, riding on a custom little cart Susan had attached to her motorbike as they cruised Kyushu. He had been obedient, loyal to a fault although he had a bad habit of always peeing in the bike's tires. Saki would get so mad at it because now their bikes all stank and Susan would just laugh.

That little pooch would end up outliving Saki by ten years. Sickness, Susan had told her in a call.

Poor girl had been devastated by her dog's death but like with Saki's untimely demise, Susan moved on.

And maybe that was Reiko's problem. She had moved on with her life but not with Saki's death. In her nightmares, she had seen Saki launching herself to her death over and over again and here comes this girl, looking like Saki, looking like the dead, performing the same stunt and surviving. Reiko almost had a heart attack but she ended up getting angry instead. The problem was, why? Why get angry? She hadn't been angry when Saki took on that challenge, so what had changed? How had Reiko changed?

Saki had been her best friend, the one who understood her the most, the one who took things way too seriously, the one who jumped over a damn cliff to prove to the whole world that Dorami was king…

...and that their reign was over.

* * *

Junko Konno.

Perfect. Popular. Beautiful.

Konno had taken the world by storm, in the same way Mizuno had with Iron Frill, with her voice. Okoba still remembers her magnificent voice...and how much Four sounds like her.

Okoba remembers seeing her in the tube...excuse me, the television set all those years ago.

She was amazing. Her voice, impressive. For someone like Konno, that voice was angelic, it moved the world around her. Deep, powerful, and like her, gone too soon.

All it took was death to make that glorious voice disappeared; she died, trapped like a sardine inside the plane that came tumbling down from the skies, trapped with the screams of despair.

Official story was that Konno had been heading to Saga for a tour. Her manager had stayed behind, decided to join her a few days later, accompanied by her parents. But that meeting never happened, the plane fell, it crashed, it killed Konno and two hundred others in an instant.

Konno had been one of the few passengers that had been torn apart when the plane crashed. Others had lost legs, arms, faces, but Konno...Konno had been ripped to pieces, and if the rumors were to be believed, her eyes had been opened when they found her.

Okoba drank some more.

Her parents had never recovered. They died a few years later. No one knew whether it was the illness or heartbreak that doomed them, all Okoba knew was that Konno's mother was first, her father followed soon after. It was a tragic end all the same. At least, if there was an afterlife out there, they were together.

Okoba drank again and finished the bottle, throwing it to the side; the migraine was coming, he was seeing their ghosts.

* * *

The graveyard was quiet; not that it surprised him, graveyards were lonely places, reminders of the dead and people's mortality.

He didn't really care.

Dead was dead, simple as that.

And so was she.

He stared at the grave, eyes scanning the name engraved on the fine marble, wishing it would disappear, wishing it would be replaced by an unknown name that he didn't recognize so he would know all this was a farce and that she wasn't dead.

Minamoto Sakura, it read.

The man sighed.

His wish didn't come true, after all.

So, he decides to take out a cigarette. He had stopped by a shop before coming here and bought a new pack of smokes. He took it out and lit it, taking a deep breath before expelling the smoke, his eyes never leaving the grave.

He sighed again.

The name was still there; everything had been true, she was still dead, he was still smoking, heー

"Genji Kurosawa! Smoking in front of your sister!?"

The young man, Genji, bit unto the stub of the cigarette, almost choking on the smoke.

Behind him, standing none all too pleased with a frown on her face, was an old lady, Mrs. Hondo, a bouquet of flowers in one hand.

"Ma'am," Genji coughed, shaking his head. "What a surprise...to see you…" The old lady sent him a look.

"Genji...I cannot believe you, boy. Smoking! Don't you know those are dangerous to your lungs!" Genji smiled a bit.

His mother hated that nasty habit he had developed a few years back; but it wasn't a problem yet. A package of smokes lasted him a month. Recently, they had lasted just a few weeks. Maybe he did have a problem.

"Don't worry about me, Mrs. Hondo...I don't make it a habit to smoke often."

(except for now, except for when he saw that girl with the frozen smile, the one that was supposed to be dead...and she still was)

"I hope so, for your mother's sake," Mrs. Hondo grumbled, as old ladies tend to do when they chastises others for their faults. "I'll say...it is a surprise to see you...how long has it been, young man? Three...four years?"

"Six, actually…"

His mother had remarried just two years after Sakura's passing; the wedding had originally been planned two years earlier, when Sakura was still alive, but the pain at the time had been impossible to handle and a wedding much less so. So, they waited. The wedding had been small, not a grand event like they had planned but it hadn't mattered then.

Genji's mother had met her new boyfriend a year before the divorced had finalized, their parents had already separated back then, three years previously, so it wasn't really a surprise that their mother was dating. Genji remembered hating the new man just as much as he hated the old man. Sakura had just smiled, happy for their mother, but that didn't meant she didn't have misgivings about her new partner. The old man didn't seem to have a problem with him. If he made his ex-wife happy, who was he to complain. Their parents had fallen out of love a long time ago, but they never stopped being friends. Genji figures that made it easier for the old man to move on.

(and then Sakura died)

It was his stepfather's job that forced them to move away from Karatsu six years ago.

Genji was younger then, not in a rush for college, still brooding over his future, that he had just packed his bags and accompanied his mother and stepfather to new sights, to Florida. He had nothing left in Karatsu; the old man was in Tokyo, handling his new company and Sakura was dead.

But man, fucking Florida.

It was too hot, too humid, too wet, but at the end, it had been home. Genji certainly stopped complaining after a few years in the place, got a job, went to a few classes on the side, and just lived. He wasn't entirely happy, but he could cope.

(and then, when he decides to come back to his old home, he sees the girl on the flyer, the girl that looks like the dead)

"Ah, yes, yes...six years, is a long time, yes." Mrs. Hondo smiled before stepping towards Sakura's grave and leaving the flowers in a nearby urn, red rose, blue rose, yellow. A pretty bunch. "I am a little late," she goes on, bowing towards the stone with Sakura's name before turning to Genji. "I had a doctor's appointment...imagine if I had not gone! I wouldn't have caught you!" Genji smiled.

At almost seventy years old, Mrs. Hondo still looked like she was no older than sixty; she had been delivering flowers to Sakura's grave for the past eleven years. Mrs. Hondo had been there for Sakura when her parents couldn't be, either because they lived across the globe or in another city and couldn't travel often because of work.

(their mother had come every month when they were still living in Karatsu but not anymore...the old man...he would accompany her too, to see to their dead daughter and  _he_  had stopped coming because it hurt  _so_  much)

"And what brings you back home, young man?"

Genji shrugged.

(the dead)

"Eh, I'm not sure yet."

Mrs. Hondo raised an eyebrow. "You're not sure?"

Genji shrugged again.

(he was sure and it was all the girl's fault)

"I'm still thinking about it...if it doesn't work out, I'm going back to Florida." And at that, Mrs. Hondo huffed.

"Your sister is lonely here," she told him, shaking her head, her tone making no room for argument. "Stop living in this Florida and move back. This old lady makes for poor company."

 _But she's dead_ , he wants to say, but he just smiles. "I'll think about...I did miss Karatsu, if I'm honest."

(but he misses  _her_  more)

Mrs. Hondo smiles then, before she stares at the grave one more time, nods and then, waves goodbye, Genji nods, and waves.

Once the old lady is gone, Genji turns to stare at the grave, cigarette smoking hot, half finished. He fishes out the flyer again, stares at the picture, stares at the girl with the frozen smile before he looks at the grave.

Sakura Minamoto, it stubbornly reads.

He puts the flyer away, lets out a bit of smoke from his lit cigarette and walks away.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Meanwhile, in the other side of Karatsu, a particular group of girls are busy living their lives, uh, their undead lives.

Yugiri smiles sweetly at a fan, offering her a shake of hands and a photograph. Behind her, Sakura waves goodbye to another fan, who waves back, her friend giggling and smiling excitedly, nodding at the autograph in her hands.

Eventually, the lines dwindle down, and the girls let out a sigh of relief. The merchandise had been sold out an hour ago, minus the fabulous Franchouchou shirts, of course. Kotaro was probably already arguing with Saki backstage, wondering why the shirts didn't sell at all and Saki was already threatening to light the box on fire and get it over with.

(it wasn't the first time she had threatened to destroy the shirts; Kotaro had threatened to light her hair on fire and leave her bald if she did...neither had yet to go through with it, which was a relief for Sakura's peace of mind)

Finally, the place was almost empty; a few people had stuck around, still talking with Ai and Lily and Sakura. Yugiri had been left on her own, and it was time to go backstage, if only to make sure Lady Saki hadn't killed Kotaro. She knows poor Lady Junko wouldn't know how to deal with those two when they got fired up like that.

As she walked, her eyes barely caught a young man all the way in the back of the room; she remembers him.

He's been around a few concerts, always near the back, always staring, always looking at her. Everyone else, he ignores. He just stares at her.

Yugiri is used to the stares, used to the lust.

It came with the job.

Men would come all over to see her; they carried lust, they smelt of alcohol, they hid grief, and she had attended to them all.

Except, this wasn't her old job.

But it was of no consequence; Yugiri could defend herself, she had been taught so for her safety. Men could be uncaring while they were enthralled with passion and sake.

If this young man turned out to be a problem, she could handle it. Or Saki could sent him flying with a kick. She wasn't worried.

(it was too bad, however, when a few weeks later, she had been too late to stop him from hurting one of her friends)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun Fact: Sakura's brother's name is a name I used for another character for in another story I posted a while back...I just like to reuse names and well, I like that one. :)


	10. Pulling Muscles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early chapter today! ...and there will be an update on Friday, too!

**10 / Pulling Muscles**

"GOOD MORNING, LADIES!"

New day, new mess.

"Slept well, hmm?" Kotaro went on, a hand on his hip, the other in his pocket, a smile on his lips. "Well, that's good!" he said, not bothering to hear a response, which came as no surprise to the others. "It's great! It's wonderful! And you know why!? Because we have a long day ahead of us!" And then, he promptly turned and walked out.

Sakura and Junko glanced at each other, blinking. Ai raised an eyebrow. Yugiri cocked her head to the side in confusion. Lily rolled her eyes and Saki just raised her hands, mouth twisting into a scowl. Tae reacted by just turning her head to the side, ignoring everyone else entirely.

Seconds later, the girls heard a small  _ding!_  and Kotaro appeared again, riding a bicycle, with a small basket in the front holding Romero. He began circling the blackboard before stopping a few inches away from the girls, the zombie dog in the basket let out a small yawn.

"...uhm…" Sakura began, eyeing Kotaro and the bicycle, as the manager kept on ringing the bell. "What...what is that for?"

"What do you think it's for, you stupid zombie?!" Kotaro yelled, annoyed. "It's a bike!"

"I mean…" Sakura sighed. A year in, and still, Kotaro's crazy was a force to be reckoned with. A part of her wondered if he was doing this on purpose to mess with them. "I mean...why do you have a bike?"

"To ride it of course."

Sakura just raised an eyebrow of Kotaro, pursing her lips while Saki groaned on the side. "We know what a fucking bike is for, you idiot! What the hell are you doing riding it around here for!?"

"Isn't it obvious!?"

"No." Ai told him, shaking her head. "It's not."

"Well, it should be," Kotaro grumbled before he began to make circles around the blackboard again. "You will be participating in…" the man stopped in front of them, ringing the bell one, two, three times. "...IN A BIKE RACE!"

"Huh?"

"What?"

"A bike...race?"

"Yes!" their manager cried, grinning. "Franchouchou has been invited to participate in a special event! A race! A race for charity!"

"A charity race?" Junko echoed, sounding a bit intrigued, despite her initial misgivings. Everyone else seemed mighty interested as well, minus Tae, who was currently staring at the ceiling.

Kotaro nodded, ringing the bell again. "Yes, yes! Some businessman from Tokyo set up the event to raise funds for a local charity...donations, bike races, food...whatever, whatever!"

"Oh!" Sakura replied, suddenly smiling. "That sounds neat!"

"Isn't it? Isn't it!?" Kotaro asked her with a cheeky grin, chuckling slightly. "The race!" he went on. "The race will be a few miles long...nothing too strenuous...not like you need to know that. You're dead, after all."

"That's...interesting…" Ai said, glancing to the side before raising her eyebrow. "And we were invited?"

"EXACTAMUNDO!" Kotaro cried again, leaning a little closer to the girls and making Junko and Sakura almost fall off of their seats in surprise. He turned to Ai and said, "I got mail." That explained absolutely nothing but Ai didn't feel like asking. He was already fired up as it was.

"...so...it's just an open event, then?" Lily asked him with half lidded eyes. "Anyone can just go and participate?"

Kotaro just answered by ringing the bike's bell over and over again. "ARE YOU READY!? TOMORROW'S THE BIG DAY! SO….SO….SEE YAAA!" And then, he made one circle around the blackboard and left, ringing his little bell as Romero began to bark.

* * *

The event had been set up near Karatsu Bay, giving the participants and onlookers a beautiful view of the sea and the Karatsu Castle in the distance.

Franchouchou had arrived just a few hours ago; as they had all figured, their manager had decided to join the race at the last minute and had to make a line to get them all signed up and another half hour to rent the bikes they'll need for the event.

The worst part was that the girls had been forced to wear the ugly Franchouchou shirts once more, Kotaro saying that they needed to advertise and what better way to gain a reputation boost than participating in a charity race! He also figured, privately, that the shirts would finally be sold out in the next event if fans saw them wearing it during the race.

Saki, Yugiri remembers, had scoffed and muttered under her breath, "I should have burned these pieces of shit when I had the chance…" before marching off, following after Sakura, who had volunteered to help Kotaro get the bikes they'll need for the event.

Meanwhile, keeping to themselves as far away from the crowd, the rest of Franchouchou stood. Ai and Lily grumbled about the shirts, Junko tried not to melt with embarrassment, hiding her face with her hands and shaking her head, while Tae sneezed and yawned behind them, oblivious to the world. Yugiri, for her part, kept herself busy by watching the sights.

A beach.

How majestic.

Back when she had been alive, Yugiri had never so much as seen a beach up close before. She rarely was allowed to travel far from the red light district she worked in, and even then, when a rich patron asked for her services for a few days, their time would be spent at the patron's home, talking, writing for him, playing her shamisen, before the inevitable happened and he took her back home. It happened rarely, however. Most contented themselves to just doing their business in the brothel and then leaving.

There had been, however, a peculiar old man that had asked for her services one day.

Instead of the usual, he had asked her if she wanted to take a walk with him and she had agreed. So, they walked and talked.

The man would talk about the silliest of things, stories he heard, the weather, changes in the government, a particularly ugly kimono he saw the other day, the coming of bad omens, anything that struck his fancy that day was motive for conversation. He was also a big spender so when her old manager saw him coming, he always made absolutely sure that Yugiri was free for the day, no matter what.

This man had been one of the rare ones; the ones that sought companionship instead of pleasure. And Yugiri enjoyed her time with the man. He was a sweet man. A gentleman.

He never put his hands on her.

It was...somehow comforting.

Now, looking at the beach in the present, the calmness of the waves, the gentleness of the sand, she was reminded of those walks, of the man who called himself Jofuku, who, like the wind, was gone, just like time.

Yugiri suddenly smiled, a forlorn smile.

(oh, how could time be so unforgiving?)

The courtesan turned away from the waters (and her memories) to stare at the nearby stands; they had been set up neatly in the sand, standing side by side, not too close, their banners floating by the side, all of names she could not recognize. Local businesses, food, trinkets, they were all there, all full to the brim with customers, some eating, some browsing, some laughing. By the end of the line of stands, was a large sign. It reads "Sherry & Gale Advertising" in big block letters, below it, information about the event, times, rentals, etc.

Sakura had spotted the sign first when she followed after Kotaro.

She had frowned, cocking her head to the side before shaking it. It was as if she was trying to figure out the name but couldn't quite put her finger on it.

When Yugiri had inquired, Ai had just shrugged and said, "She probably heard the name somewhere before...before she, uh, you know. The name doesn't ring a bell with me, though. If the company is set in Tokyo, I've never heard of it and believe me, the company that I used to work for dangled with a lot of advertisers and this Sherry and Gale was not one of them."

Eventually, Sakura, Saki and Kotaro finally returned, dragging with them the bikes they'll need for the race. Sakura and Saki had two while their manager struggled with three. Apparently, Kotaro had forgotten to count and instead of calling one of the girls to help out with the extra bike, he had to drag all three bikes by himself. Saki was certainly not going to help him, and the others guessed she had made sure Sakura wouldn't try to help him either.

Once the bikes had been delivered, Kotaro informed them that the event was set to start in half an hour, pointing at the makeshift track that had been made all around the beach, a pair of flags at certain distances. They were to make at least five laps, minimum, but the event was set to last a couple of hours until the time ran out. Kotaro had made it very clear he wanted them to complete the event until those hours were up. It was set to be five hours long.

"You'll be fine! You'll be fine!" he had told them, before nodding, wishing them luck and disappearing into the crowd.

"And there he goes," Ai commented, watching their manager leave.

"Geh...figures he'll leave us with the heavy lifting," Saki remarked, dryly, glaring at where the man had disappeared into. "Bah! Whatever. It's not like we need to be in first place or anything...it's just making circles around the beach."

"For five hours," Lily said, shaking her head.

"We'll have to stop every half hour or so…don't want anyone getting suspicious," Ai told them.

"W-well...we do get tired, don't we?" Junko asked, causing Ai to smirk.

"Yeah, we kinda do...and then our limbs start falling off."

That got a chuckle out of the girls.

Sakura, all smiles and positive, grinned. "I don't think we really have to worry about that, though!" she exclaimed, excitedly. "If we keep our distance we might not have to worry about bumping into anyone at all." The young woman glanced at her bike. "It's been so long since I rode a bike!...well, I don't really think the one we rode in the Gatalympics really counts..."

"You had a bike before?" Saki asked her, as she inspected her own bike, nodding in satisfaction after a bit. Saki didn't care much for run-of-the-mill bikes, the ones with no motors. They were no good for her back then.

"I had a few...I outgrew most of them...but two…" Sakura muttered, adding that last part almost unconsciously before realizing her mistake.

Too late.

Everyone was already interested.

"What do ya mean by that, Egghead?"

"Ah, well…" Sakura was getting nervous now. It was easy to tell, Yugiri realized. Sakura had a tendency to panic most of the time, and how could she not, considering their current situation of being quite literally the living dead. Yugiri did notice, however, that Sakura used to panic a lot more previously before her old memories came back. Now, that nervousness was mainly connected to her past and the usual strangeness that surrounded them once in a while. "...it's...it's a long story."

"We have time, Egghead...the event's like in an hour or so."

"Make that twenty minutes," Ai said, pointing at a man in the distance with a megaphone, already informing people around him to get ready in twenty minutes. "I guess we can manage...let's get ready to go until they say five minutes...wouldn't want to get exposed in this crowd."

"So, so!" Lily began, sounding mighty curious. "Tell us about those two bikes. You said you had many bikes...and then those two, right?" Sakura gave her a slow nod.

"Ah...yes! Umm...well, originally I had five bikes...plus those final two, so really it was just three that I outgrew. The first one I got when I was fourteen. That one I used to get to and from school, go on errands, those sorts of things."

"You fall into a canal with that one?" Saki asked her with good humor; Ai rolled her eyes, Junko shook her head, and Lily and Yugiri offered her a giggle and a smile respectively. Tae was trying not to look too interested.

Sakura smiled, her expression suddenly distant as she got lost in her memories. "No. No. It wasn't a canal...it uh...it was...well…" Sakura let out a small, nervous laugh.  _Oh dear_ , Yugiri thought. "That...that one...that one was run over by a truck."

Everyone, including Tae, turned to stare at her.

"...are...are you serious?"

"A...a tr-truck!?"

Saki was already shaking her head. "What the hell you do, Egghead? Park it in the middle of the street, or what?"

Sakura shook her head, laughing nervously again. "N-no! Nothing like that! I...uh...well, I was going up a hill, see...and then, well, I fell. Made a flip. By the time I recorved, I noticed the bike hadn't really fallen with me...it stood upright...for some reason...and well, it rolled down. And down it went until it reached the street. By the time I caught up with it, it was struck by the truck." Sakura was sighing now.

"You...you are…" Saki didn't have the heart to finish that sentence. Sakura's luck was...an odd thing. She had bad days, too. They were rare but they happened. Sure, the mirror back in the studio broke that one time when Sakura had stared at it, so what? Saki had broke it even more with her fist. Luck had nothing to do with that. So, what the hell was it with this now? Sakura's luck couldn't be this bad.

"Oh, it wasn't so bad!" Sakura said, scratching her cheek, sounding every bit as nervous as before. "Well...I got off easy...it was an accident after all." Not to mention the scratches and bruises she got on her arms and legs after that fall. Her childhood friend, Shiro, had fretted over her for a few days after the accident before sighing and saying, "At least it was the bike and not you."

Not like that made any difference in the end, all things considered.

"And what h-happened to the second one?" Junko asked her.

Sakura suddenly stared at nowhere, shook her head once, and said, "That...well...that one, I got a few months after the whole mess with the firs-uhm...the...the truck. So, it was particularly new."

"That one did not get hit by a...ah, truck, I presume?" Yugiri wondered; she blinked in surprise when Sakura suddenly flinched.

"Well...n-no. It...it wasn't a truck this time...or any vehicle for that matter."

"Eh? What was it!? What was it!?" Lily exclaimed, eyes shining with uncontrolled excitement. Behind her, showing mild interest, Tae groaned.

"Uhm...well...how...how do I say this?" Sakura suddenly looked determined and said, "Acrocodileateit."

The girls around her blinked; Sakura had spoke so fast, the girls had a hard time processing what she had said.

"Pardon?" Yugiri began. "What was that?"

"...it...it was eaten."

"Did you say...eaten!?" Ai cried, eyebrows shooting up, while Saki stared wide-eyed at the pink haired girl standing next to her. Junko reacted with a loud gasp, Lily just stared at Sakura and Yugiri's eyes widen slightly. "What do you mean, eaten!?"

Sakura scratched her cheek again, eyes half closed, trying to avoid looking at her friends. "W-well...there was th-this park where I would ride my bike, the previous bikes, anyway...this new bike was already a few days old and I wanted to ride it around the park for a while. There's this...this canal not far from there, it's nearly full all year round. So...eh...well, I run over a small rock and this same rock sends me tumbling down, the bike falling a bit near the canal...and next thing I know, a crocodile just appears and chomps on the tire."

"You...you are kidding me…" Saki whispers, but Sakura just shakes her head, still not looking at them.

"I thought I was dreaming...it just ate the tire and...well...it...it choked on it." Sakura sighs, sounding tired. "...it ate the tire and then it died."

Everyone just kept staring at her; five minutes, five minutes to get to your places, megaphone man cried out.

"I didn't get anymore bikes after that…" Sakura finished, pushing her bike towards the starting line, with the others breaking out of their trance and moving to follow after her.

Lagging behind Sakura, Ai commented to the others, "You know...the more I hear about Sakura's...luck...the less sure I am about the whole thing about us all being unlucky…"

"W-well...we are...all dead," Junko whispered. "We are still pretty unlucky…"

They were silent as they reached the starting line, megaphone man already counting down for them to begin the race.

(how can life be so unforgiving?)

* * *

The race ended with no problems in the end.

Tae was the only one the girls had to truly keep an eye on, since the older woman had suddenly decided to take a nap as she was cycling, forcing Sakura and the others to steer her clear of any collisions.

They finished the race, bought a few snacks, and then, Kotaro ushered them out as quickly as possible, van at the ready and in minutes, they were back home.

All in all, it was an enjoyable evening.

(except for that boy...he was there again…)

Yugiri wished they could do it again sometime soon.

Well, so long as Lady Tae didn't try to take a nap every ten minutes. Poor Sakura had almost fallen a few times trying to make sure the older woman didn't crash or fall as she snoozed.

For now, everyone was getting ready for bed. Tae was already on her futon, snoring, dead to the world. Saki was lying on her futon, hands on the back of her head as she and Lily talked. The ex-biker was still going on about burning the shirts and Lily was wondering whether she should help her or not. Ai and Junko were sitting over their blankets, talking about some unknown thing that didn't involve fire damage. Yugiri had finished brushing her hair and was glancing around the room.

Ah.

Sakura was missing.

She probably was gazing at the stars in the balcony.

The young woman had started doing that often but sometimes she'll lose track of time. Sometimes she didn't sleep at all. Not that they needed to sleep, being dead and all but Lady Ai had remarked, somewhat sheepishly, that they still shouldn't miss sleep, no matter how much they could endure. Ai certainly didn't want a repeat of what she went through during the whole Saga Rock deal some months back.

Yugiri had yet to be feel the least bit tired, so she decided to go and look for Sakura and accompany her for the night.

The stars were rather charming this evening, after all. No one had to be alone.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

A few minutes later, Yugiri found Sakura, sitting down on that familiar bench, admiring the sights before her; the sea of trees, the waves in the water, the stars in the sky.

Sakura immediately took notice of her band mate and smiled her way. "Yugiri!"

"Hello," the woman replied, smiling softly. "May I?" Yugiri gestured to bench, Sakura smiled, and scooted a little to the side, allowing the courtesan to take a seat next to her. "Ah, the stars are beautiful tonight," she commented, eyeing the stars lightning up the sky of Karatsu, a few clouds scattered here and there.

"They are pretty," Sakura agreed, smiling.

The two were silent for a bit, just admiring the scenery before them. Nearby, they heard Romero howl at the moon.

"Lady Sakura?"

"Hmm?"

"Can I ask a question?"

"Uh, sure."

"How are you doing?"

"Huh?" Sakura turned to the courtesan. "Eh...wh-what do you mean?"

"I mean, in general...are you well?"

"...uh...well, I guess. I'm dead...so…" Yugiri smiled.

"Ah, that's not exactly what I meant."

"Huh?"

"I noticed you have been a tad bit...tense, I suppose...ever since Lady Saki told that story about crashing."

Sakura stared at her a bit, finally realizing what Yugiri was talking about. She sighed. "I...I guess…"

"You seemed awfully unhappy about that particular story, more so than usual," Yugiri noted.

"Heh...was I too obvious?"

Yugiri shrugged her shoulders. "I'll rather not say."

Sakura laughed. "I guess I was…"

They were silent for a while before the young woman said, "It was my brother."

"Hmm?"

"My brother...he had the umbrella on his hands when the wind blew it away…" Sakura told her, smiling softly. "I'll usually pick him up after school was over...Mom...Mom figured it was going to rain...so she told me to take the umbrella." Sakura stared at the distance. "I...that...that was before my parents separated."

"Separated?"

"I guess it's hard to explain…"

Yugiri shook her head. "No. I think I understand…"

For a while, the two just sat there in silence, each staring at the sky, staring at a world that they could no longer be part of.

Eventually, the courtesan glanced at her quiet companion, and with great dismay, realized that Sakura had begun to cry. Her companion's tears fell silently, down her cheeks, down her neck, down, down, they went. Sakura didn't seem to notice her tears or maybe, she didn't want to notice them. Yugiri moved closer, her fingers brushing against Sakura's cheeks, trying to wipe the tears away.

"Lady Sakura…"

Sakura closed her eyes slowly, trying to trap the tears that wouldn't stop. "I-I'm al-alright…" she hiccupped, a hand trying to wipe the tears away before Yugiri stopped her. Sakura opened her eyes again and stared into Yugiri's own. The tears just wouldn't stop. "I...I just…I...I didn't realize how much I missed my...family until...until I started thinking about them…" And Sakura buried her face into her hands and cried. Yugiri didn't wait for an invitation; she moved closer, taking Sakura's grieving form into her arms, offering her shoulder for her to cry on.

Sakura kept on crying, her anguish louder than the silence that surrounded them.


	11. Million Little Pieces

**11 / Million Little Pieces**

His head was clear, his alcohol finished. The research lay before him; words, words, words, none of them made sense. The past, the present, Franchouchou, the dead. None of it made sense.

Okoba is already asking himself questions. Questions that made no sense but explained so much.

Can the dead come back to life?

No. Of course not. What a stupid question!

Okoba was still probably suffering from all that drinking last night. Yeah. That was it. The alcohol was making him question life again. He was the stereotypical drunk. Yeah. Yeah. That was all.

...but what about reincarnation?

Again!?

Okoba shook his head.

He was already regretting those bottles, regretting those sleepless nights, regretting this research.

The man was willing to believe that stupid question made sense...for like three members of Franchouchou, maybe four, but the rest of them…? Distant cousins? Family no one cared to talk about?

Okoba breath a sigh of relief. That last part made sense. It was reasonable to believe the girls had family members that looked exactly alike. Yeah. It made sense, right?

The dead can't come back to life. They just couldn't.

 _Maybe_ , Okoba thinks, eyeing the bottle nearby.  _I should stop drinking on weekends…_

(but what about the dead?)

* * *

Genji let out a loud yawn as he stretched.

It was a new day in Karatsu, but Genji felt he hadn't slept at all.

The young man took a look around the apartment, three weeks old and it was already a mess.

The bed was a disaster, it's covers and pillows scattered all over. There were empty water bottles on the counter, their companions dirty dishes and empty ramen cups lay with them, some on the sink, some on the floor. A laptop was lonely on top of the bedside table, papers, ramen cups surrounding it. Clothes were on the ground, or had been unceremoniously thrown into the small closet as if that would make them disappear from the face of the earth. There were a few other things here and there, sound equipment, an electronic piano, a guitar, and a pair of small speakers; his old things from back home.

All in all, the apartment was a mess.

Home sweet home, Genji guessed.

He figured he'll clean it in a month or so...or before he left.

Genji turned towards a stack of papers by the table and examined them.

Monster sighting, hauntings in springs hotels, zombies, Franchouchou, what an odd collection they all made. The flyer of the girl with the frozen smile lay next to the stack of papers, already crumbled and looking worn by all the folding and unfolding it had gone through throughout Genji's stay in Saga. Next to it, was a small calendar he had bought off of the internet. It was a cute thing. It had pictures of the smiling (dead) girl, frozen in time, frozen smiles, frozen amongst a few pages along with those others.

Genji suddenly shook his head.

He was an idiot.

Three concerts, three. He had missed three concerts. All because he had lost his nerve at the last minute.

If only Genji had gone to those concerts and met that girl face to face, he would have confirmed himself of a truth he knew all along and then he would pack up his bags, clean the filthy mess of an apartment and go back home. That had been the plan, anyway. It had been a stupid plan but it was the only thing he had.

Genji still wasn't sure what he'll find. He didn't even know why he was still bothered by it all. And yet, as he stared at the girl with the frozen smile, his heart almost stopped.

She looked like Sakura and yet it couldn't be her. It wasn't her. It had never been her.

Sakura Minamoto had died eleven years ago. She had gotten hit by a truck and had had her head cracked open like an egg, spilling her life all over the hard, cold pavement.

They had done the best to fix her for the wake; broken bones had been mended and moved, glass had been removed, blood had been cleaned, but that scar, the scar of the dead had still been there. The ugly reminder of her death was the only thing they weren't able to fix.

And here was this girl, this girl with the same smile, no scar, no death, no nothing.

So, what was wrong?

Genji let out a sigh, blinking, before looking around; he spots the packet of cigarettes on the other bedside table. He moves to reach for it, catches sight of the flyer, and then, he stops.

He's going crazy, the young man suddenly thinks, turning towards the girl in the flyer, the girl with the frozen smile and shining blue eyes.

(what is he looking for?)

* * *

Dead, alive, dead, alive...dead, dead, dead.

Okoba felt he was going insane. He had dead girls on one side and living girls in the other and nothing was making sense. They look alike, except one group was dead and the other, surely wasn't.

So, he went back to work; if the information wouldn't do, perhaps music would. He stared at Konno and Mizuno's pictures before nodding, sighing deeply and searching.

The man found clips from a few of Franchouchou's performances, put them aside in a seperate window on the browser before searching for Junko Konno. He found an old clip of a television show where Konno had given a performance, the year had been 1983, just a few months before her untimely demise. Then, he searched for Ai Mizuno, and seconds later, found a recording of a performance from Arpino, 2007. It was their best hit, "Fantastic Lovers". He listened to Konno's performance before moving to Mizuno's song. He listened to each song once, twice, three times, to make sure his ears weren't playing tricks on him.

Then, he played Franchouchou's song, "Atsuku Nare"; he listened, then, he compared and contrasted with Mizuno's song from 2007 and Konno's song from '83.

He found the match. Well, it was actually two, or rather, it was Three and Four, like he had somehow expected.

Ai Mizuno for Three. Junko Konno for Four.

...goddammit all.

Could he had heard wrong? No. He had done this twice, three times, four, until he realized an hour had gone by and the voices were still the same.

Dead here, living there.

Okoba was sweating now. He was starting to ask those questions again, itching for the bottle again.

Ghosts, ghosts everywhere.

(but could the dead come back to life?)

* * *

The dead couldn't come back to life, Genji knew.

It was stupid to think the impossible could happen, so why, why did he do all this research for? Why keep that old flyer and hide it for so long in his pocket?

What was it about that girl with the frozen smile that made him ask the stupidest of questions?

Maybe he was wrong (obviously). Maybe he was being stupid (most likely). Maybe he was trying to find something that wasn't really there (because it wasn't).

He grabbed a few papers from the pile and stared at them. The concerts, the stories about the living dead, that zombie storyline. Nothing made sense. And yet, here he was, trying to make sense of that which was impossible. He threw the papers away, and stared at the wall.

Was it the guilt, he wondered. That had to be it. Guilt.

Guilt at his behavior in the past, guilt of what happened after.

His last interaction with his older sister had been when Sakura had been visiting; it was common for her to do that once a month, maybe twice, sometimes staying over the weekend with him and his mother and their mother's boyfriend. Ever since his parents separated it had always been like this. Sakura had stuck around with the old man, he had stuck with their mother. And Genji still remembers hating Sakura for that.

Back then, Genji had been a little shit. He knew that now. The separation, the divorce, he had taken things out of proportion and had gotten angry at the world, at the old man, at his sister.

Their parents, even after it all, could still talk to each other, laugh at the old times, but their kids, nah, nah, their kids were another thing entirely. The son hated the daughter, and that was that. Little shit of a son had felt betrayed his sister had chosen the old man instead of him; it had cut deep, tore them apart, and despite the sister wanting (trying) to make things right again between the two of them, the brother wouldn't hear of it. And then, one day, the sister died, died knowing her brother hated her, died knowing he'll probably not care. It hadn't been fair, really.

He still remembered crying out for a sister that wouldn't come back. Still remembers the dreams, still remembers how Sakura would haunt him. She was always smiling, offering him a ticket to that concert for some band, asking, sometimes begging, him to go with her...and suddenly, a loud horn, and the truck would appear to take her away as it had done in life and then, the dream was over.

Genji shook his head.

It was the guilt again. That's what this all had been about.

He had been young, young and cruel. He had ignored his sister and lost her the next day. Loss and guilt. Guilt and loss.

Nothing would have changed if he had said 'yes' to Sakura's invitation, Genji knew. He reached for the flyer, the flyer with the girl that looked so much like his sister, the girl that smiled just like her.

Sakura was dead.

She had died almost instantly, they said. She hadn't suffered, they said.

Fuck that. She had suffered, all right. You couldn't just take it slow as a car hit you and left you there, lying in a pool of your own blood for the whole world to see.

Sakura had suffered...she was dead. And Genji sometimes wondered if she had suffered more because of how she died or because of how much her brother had once hated her so?

Genji glared at the flyer, not even bothering with the tears that spilled out of his eyes. They fell, tiny drops, big drops, over the image of the girl with the frozen smile. And then, he squashed the flyer with his fist, the other hand covering his face as he sobbed. "...what...what the hell am I doing…?"

Dead was dead. Sakura was dead.

And the dead couldn't come back to life.

* * *

The coffee had not made things better, Okoba would realize a few hours later.

The ghosts were still there. Still staring back, frozen smiles, frozen pictures. A dead parade.

And now, here he was again, researching, unable to let the dead rest, unable to give himself a break. He was on a caffeine buzz. He couldn't rest, couldn't sleep. He just kept seeing ghosts.

And then, even the coffee couldn't save him.

Okoba read and reread the information before him; it was a blog, a blog he had paid little attention to during his search that began all those days back.

The blog was mainly about death metal, daily lives of metal heads, those sorts of things but hidden deep within pages and pages of news, articles, concerts, videos, was a small little thing, something about Death Musume and Green Face and finally, Franchouchou. They talked about that first performance, screams, headbanging, then, the second one, a performance that ended with a rap, and later, the name change to Franchouchou.

He took in everything written in the blog, the argument that gave birth to a rap battle, the storyline about zombies, zombies, zombies, the dead, dead, dead.

Okoba felt like he was falling.

He drank more coffee and then, spit it out.

The man got to work again, searching for monster sightings in Saga, going on a limb, going on crazy street now until finally he found something; a haunting in a hot springs hotel, monster sightings in the streets of Karatsu, and then, he found the article.

"Do the dead walk among us?" the title read.

The article was almost two years old, it had been hidden behind articles of daily life in Saga, food recipes and odds and ends. It detailed the mysterious appearance of a strange girl. Her skin was rotting, she was moaning, groaning, howling at the moon. The witnesses were a couple out on a date in the late hours of the night, and they say that the girl just jumped at them. She spit, she growled, she showed sharp teeth. They were terrified for their lives and ran off before she could catch them. The couple had not seen her face but one of them recognized the clothes she wore, it had been a dark blue school uniform and an odd colored ribbon tied on her hair. The only thing the couple could agree on was that she was terrifying and that her eyes were blood red.

Dead, dead...dead parade.

Okoba was being stupid...wasn't he?

...he needed more information.

No matter what he thought now, or what he'll think in a month's time, he needed more information.

These stories were just stories, rumors, nothing more.

After all, the dead couldn't come back to life.

Everything was just a big coincidence.

(it had to be)

* * *

Five was a goddess.

It was true, it was a fact. Koji Kaneda knew it so. He felt it in his heart, in his veins, in his mind, in his soul, in his everything.

She was perfect. Beautiful hair, beautiful face, beautiful figure, beautiful voice, everything about her was perfect, out of this world.

Koji was in love. And his goddess, perhaps she was too. He felt it, he knew.

Five had seen him, stared at him, once, twice, three, four, five times now. And Koji had seen her too, admired her from a distance. He had seen her in concerts, in meet-and-greets, in that stupid bike race from a few days ago, on that Drive-In Tori event, he saw her everywhere.

His room was covered with her image; every photo he had taken, every photo he had bought, everything, glued to his walls, to his ceiling, into his heart.

She was beautiful, that was a fact.

Koji loved her, wanted her, and he was so sure she wanted him too.

It was too bad those girls surrounded his goddess, kept her away from him, kept them apart.

He hated them all; the young one, that girl with the pink hair, the bitch in blonde, the girl with flowers in her hair, the silent one that hides and that weirdo in the back. All of them surrounded, confined his goddess. All of them keep her away from him.

Five needs him, Koji sees it in her eyes.

She's asking for his help, imploring him, begging him, to get her away from this strangers, this fools, this filth.

Koji knows what he has to do and no one is getting in his way.

He'll make sure of that.

* * *

" _In the early hours of the day, a local hiker was attacked by...what he describes, a monster. According to the man, the monster appeared from out of nowhere, slashed his arm and disappeared into the Nijinomatsubara forest...police theorize that what the hiker had seen was probably the bear that had been reported a few months ago near the foot of Kagamiyama and it's surrounding woods..."_

" _...the bear is considered dangerous as it has already left many animal carcasses in its wake."_

" _Police have advised the public not to head to either Kagamiyama or Nijinomatsubara until further notice…"_

" _...the hiker still maintains that what he saw near the pine forest was a monster, not a bear."_


	12. Let's Break, Let's Burn

**12 / Let's Break, Let's Burn**

Kotaro Tatsumi watched silently as Yugiri left the room, the door closing gently behind her as he was left alone in his office.

He waited; he heard Sakura and Saki nearby, already talking, already asking if she was okay before they started walking away.

Then, he sighed. He removed his glasses, hand already passing over his face in frustration before ending over his mouth, the other, holding the sunglasses before him, examining them. Wondering what secrets they kept hidden from him, wondering if they had the answers to what had happened today and what they could all lose.

What was meant to be a normal meet-and-greet turned into a disaster. Everything had happened so fast.

If only he had been faster. If only he had taken notice of that creeper stalking one of the girls at the end of the room. If only the creeper hadn't...but that was all in the past now.

He was almost glad the girls were dead...almost.

But it hadn't made a difference.

Sakura had already suffered a gunshot wound because of that idiot police officer, what was a stab wound compared to that?

Kotaro knew Sakura would be fine after a few days rest; she was dead and had been for years now.

* * *

In the past, Inui had been seventeen and in love.

It was a silly thing, love. Silly that he had fallen in love, silly that he was too shy to tell her about it. Once upon a time, when he was seven years old, he had sworn he would never fall in love, never fall under the clutches of such a silly thing. And yet, here he was, years later, breaking that very promise.

But how could he not fall in love?

That girl had been beautiful, her smile, heavenly. She had been feeling down before, but now she was shining bright again, like all those years ago.

Her name was Sakura Minamoto and he had hoped with all his heart that she loved him back.

But he knew she was only interested in Ai Mizuno, lead singer of Iron Frill. He remembered the surge of jealousy he had felt when Sakura told him about how Mizuno's words had dragged her out a horrible and dark place, how Mizuno inspired Sakura to try again, to be better, to give life another shot.

Sakura had become a fan and all she could talk about was Mizuno this and that...and how much she wanted to join that girl, that girl and her smile, up there in the same stage.

Inui hadn't been surprised that Sakura had made up her mind right then and there to be an idol. Of course, there was Shiro, Sakura's friend since grade school, who was a little skeptical of the whole thing but nonetheless, encouraged her friend so she wouldn't fall into the abyss that seemed to have consumed her months prior. Inui, too, encouraged her, tried not to make his jealousy of Mizuno so obvious as they talked about Iron Frill and upcoming concerts.

His friend had already made plans to buy tickets for Saga Rock; Iron Frill was set to perform in August. Sakura had bought the tickets in March…

...and by April, just five days after her seventeen birthday, she was dead.

There had been an assembly, and by the end, everyone knew.

Sakura's dream was dead just like her and Inui remembered his heart breaking in two.

Days later, Shiro had arrived at his home; she had decided to take him to Sakura's wake. Inui and Shiro had never been close. Sakura was their friend and that was it. Without her, they wouldn't have known each other existed.

But Shiro had been different that day, she wore black, her short hair fixed up into a bun. She had stared him up and down, told him to put on a suit, told him they were going to see Sakura.

He hadn't protested. His heart was still broken, his mind numb.

Half an hour later, the two left, side by side, in silence.

No one greeted them as they stood in the back; Shiro's eyes were red, her tears already slipping down her cheeks. Inui couldn't even bring himself to cry. He had cried in his sleep the past few days. He was dry, he was broken.

He had spotted Sakura's family nearby.

Inui had never bothered to learn their names, he had been too infatuated with Sakura to care to remember them. He vaguely remembered that her father's name was a weird one, and many of the kids in class made fun of it. Sakura would always say her father had been named after an emperor but Inui couldn't be bothered to remember the name. Not then, not ever.

And now, he was staring at the grieving family.

There was a man, tall, imposing, sitting on a folding chair. His dark pink hair was brushed back, but right there, in the middle was a small forelock of hair, sticking out like a horn...it reminded Inui of Sakura's own hair, how there was just this little thing that wouldn't settle down, no matter how much she brushed. The man would just stare at the coffin a few times before hiding his face with a hand, sobbing in silence. Next to him, a woman, glasses foggy with tears, held his shoulder as he wept. The woman looked so much like Sakura, Inui had thought it was her ghost but it was her long brown hair that clued him in and brought him back to reality. Sitting behind them, a boy, hair as brown as the woman's, hair brushed back like the man's, wept in silence, blue eyes staring at nothing as a man sat next to him, putting an arm over his shoulders while his other hand was placed on the woman's shoulder.

Neither he nor Shiro moved towards the coffin to say their goodbyes. They stay in the back, like statues, stuck with their grief, away from the rest.

They leave the funeral home before they are noticed. They go their separate ways. In school, they stop talking, stop interacting, stop everything.

And Sakura was still dead.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Days pass, as do the months. April is forgotten, May passes by so quickly, soon it's finally August.

It's August that breaths the coming of a new tragedy.

Ai Mizuno dies. Struck by lightning during a concert. Burned to a crisp, marked for life as a legend.

Inui just cries.

He weeps for the dead. He weeps for his dead friend. He weeps for the girl he loved. He weeps for Ai Mizuno, the legend.

(and Sakura is dead and now, so is Ai Mizuno)

A year passes and Inui sets his sights on Hollywood.

He moves to California, starts fresh.

Inui had dreams of becoming an actor someday. He wanted to be admired, he wanted to move people with his words, with his acting, with his passion. But he starts small, he takes acting classes, makeup courses, those sorts of things.

His acting gets him places but it's in makeup department that he excels the most. He's good at transforming the world around him, good at turning the rotten alive again.

They call him a genius, and so, he gives himself a new name; Kotaro Tatsumi, genius extraordinaire.

And then, one day, he leaves Hollywood, he leaves his connections, he leaves his success.

It's only been three years later; he's working the odd jobs, he's working in plays, working in salons, working, working, working.

He's no longer interested in movies.

Kotaro is a genius and he doesn't care.

It's April again…

...it's only been three years, but another legend dies later.

Lily Hoshikawa, one of the most popular child actresses of Japan, dies.

It's tragic.

(Sakura's still dead...so is Ai...now, it's Lily Hoshikawa's turn)

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Three years later, Kotaro has trouble getting work. He doesn't have the passion anymore. He has the skills, sharpens them day in and out but he doesn't have the will to use them.

He's stuck.

Suddenly, it's Sakura's birthday again.

Kotaro decides to celebrate by getting drunk; Sakura Minamoto was still seventeen...seventeen and going nowhere.

The young man walks around the streets of Karatsu in the dark, not really caring where he's going. He steps into the first bar he sees, seats by the counter and orders his first round of drinks.

He's alone; it's just him, the master of the bar, and later, Sakura.

Kotaro saw her sitting down next to him after his fifth glass. She's still the same, same face, same school uniform, just seventeen. Her ribbon is gone, one of her shoes is missing, there's some stitches in the middle of her forehead, almost touching her nose. She's just seventeen and she looks so sad. She stares at Kotaro who's already drunk and miserable.

"You're drunk," the girl tells him after a while. She's shaking her head, hands over the counter, staring at the master who watches over them with slight interest as he cleans a glass.

"I am," Kotaro answers, his words slurred. "And you're dead."  _And I still love you,_ he doesn't dare say.

But Sakura hears him anyway.

"I am dead…" Sakura whispers, eyes facing the older man who's still cleaning the empty glass, who still watches them. "Forget me, Mamoru...it's for your own good."

"I can't just forget you...you know that," Kotaro says, a little too loud, a little angry. But he's already talking to thin air. Sakura's already gone. Kotaro is alone, alone with the man behind the counter.

"If I were you…" the old man tells him, putting the glass in the counter, eyes staring straight into Kotaro's own. "I would listen to your lover." The man knows a drunk when he sees one. Already knows what the alcohol is doing to Kotaro's mind, already knows about the ghosts that are appearing and the regrets they show. "You had enough for the night, anyway. There's no more people coming tonight...so, I will be closing early. Finish that drink and then leave."

"Sh-she's not my lover," Kotaro slurs, shaking his head. "She's been...been dead for a while...yeaaah...a while…"

The man suddenly freezes, glares at Kotaro. "...You cannot love the dead," he says. "They'll never love you back. Dead only love dead. That's how it works."

But Kotaro wasn't listening.

His mind was already swimming; the drinks were already making him sleepy, his mind was shutting down, everything seemed so far away, so lost, so dark…and today was Sakura Minamoto's birthday, still seventeen.

(still dead)

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Kotaro wakes up with a headache.

His back is stiff but his back doesn't worry him. Not as much as it worries him that the room he's in is unfamiliar. He doesn't panic, not yet anyway. The headache doesn't let him.

Kotaro lets out a groan, light stinging his eyes, and dares to look around.

It's a small apartment; he can see a kitchen, counter and all, a small fridge near the stove, pots and pans and plates all cleaned and neatly organized by the side. He himself is on what seems to be a small living room area. Two couches, Kotaro using one of the couches as his personal bed, a table in the middle. Behind him, he sees picture frames, photos of places he barely recognizes, posters of old movies, a calendar, and a pair of bookcases full of books and files and in the middle of these two, a shrine.

The shrine is small, the picture of a beautiful woman in a magnificent kimono hiding behind a rather valuable looking urn. There's incense lit, and the woman's red eyes seem to follow his every movement as he stares back. Neither move.

"Ah, you're awake…"

The voice makes Kotaro jump; he falls off the couch and almost hits himself on the table. He barely manages to avoid a bloody nose, as if the headache wasn't enough.

"Well, I see you're up and about already. Good."

Kotaro lets out a groan before he gets up.

The master of the bar is staring at him with a bemused expression, arms crossed. "Heh. You know...I usually drop off poor fools like you in the street...lucky for you, I was feeling generous."

"...eh…?"

"You fell asleep," the man explained, moving towards the kitchen. A few minutes later, he had a cup full of water. "Here. Drink up." Kotaro took the water offered and drank it all in one gulp.

"Thank you."

"Don't mention it...what's your name, son?"

"Mamoru Inui...but nowadays, I call myself Kotaro Tatsumi."

"Hmm...sounds appropriate," the man says after a while, then, he gestured at the shrine behind Kotaro. "Her name was Yugiri," he says, as if that answered everything.

"Uh...what?"

The man stares at him, expression not changing. "You talked in your sleep...called for that girl that was not your lover...the one that was dead. Sakura, Sakura, you kept saying…"

Kotaro stared at the side, face a slight tint of red. "...she was a classmate of mine…"

"Ah."

Both men are silent for a while. Kotaro is already standing up, putting the cup on the table, getting ready to leave.

"Well...if that's all...thank you for the hospitality, sir. Iー"

"What did she tell you?" the man interrupted, eyes stern, mouth forming into a thin line.

"Eh?"

"The dead girl...Sakura...what did she tell you?"

"I-I'm sorry?" Okay, Kotaro thought. This was getting weird. What was this old man's deal? What did it matter what Sakura had said...that hadn't been Sakura, anyway! She was an illusion created out of too many drinks and too much heartbreak. "I...I don't understaー"

"If she told you to move on...a bar is the worst place to do it," the man interrupts, shaking his head. "I knew a man just like you...so in love that he forgot to live and even when he moved on, he'll still see the girl in his dreams…and you...you are just the same." Kotaro was suddenly angry. What did this old geezer know about moving on? Kotaro had gone to Hollywood! He was genius with the brush and the lipstick! He was...also unemployed, but that's besides the point!

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"She break your heart when she passed on?"

"That's none of your business." Kotaro told him rudely but instead of responding back with an insult of his own, the man smiled.

"So why did you come here, then? Did she not make it clear to you that she's already dead?"

"You don't know anything about Sakura!"

"And yet it took me a minute to learn about you," the man says back, grinning. "You lost your love, you lost your name, your way, all because of her, right? You should listen to this Sakura...she tells you to move on, then do so and when you do, perhaps you will stop sleeping in barsー" Kotaro's fist went straight for the man's face, but the man was laughing and Kotaro hit him again, the man responded by laughing louder before grabbing him by the throat and pushing him towards the couch. But Kotaro is already standing only this time, the old man is faster and he punches Kotaro, sending him down. This time he hits himself on the table as he falls.

Kotaro feels the man's hands on the back of his shirt, he's been pulled back up. He's back in the couch, nursing a bloody nose and a bruised cheek. "Got it all out of your system, kid?" the man asks, his face showing little too no signs of Kotaro's handywork. "Listen to your ghost, not your heart...it never ends well. Trust me."

"What would you know…?" Kotaro spits out, pinching his nose, trying to stop the blood from flowing. He's surprised when the man goes to the kitchen, gets him a towel and some ice and gives it to him. The fight is over.

"I know enough. I'm old. Old like dirt," the man explains, sitting on the other couch, staring behind Kotaro, at the shrine where the woman Yugiri sleeps. "I knew a man like you...he came to love a woman. She was too young, he was too old. It could never work out...and then, the young woman died. It was too sudden, too tragic, too much for the old man to bear…he kept seeing her ghost, kept wishing he had been there to protect her...but he was an old fool...so...he decided to bring her back."

"...what?"

And the man stared at him, stared at Kotaro long and hard and asked, "If you had the means to bring Sakura back to life...would you?"

Kotaro just stared at him.

"W-what the hell are you talking about?"

"The dead," the man answered, as if that explained everything.

"What about the dead!? That doesn't explain anything, you crazy old fool!"

The man laughed, hands up in the air, as if mocking Kotaro for his silly remark. "Doesn't explain anything, he says and yet, he can't be bothered to answer…" Suddenly, the man turns serious, arms crossed over his chest. "Would you give Sakura a second chance if you could?"

"Of course I would! WHO WOULDN'T?!" Kotaro was yelling now; time in Hollywood had made him a little too loud, his parents had told him when he returned but at this time, he didn't care. "I WOULD BRING HER BACK IN A HEARTBEAT IF I COULD!"

"Would you?"

"YES!"

And so, the man nodded and said, "Then, let us begin."

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

The dog's name was Romero; a pet poodle, once the pet of an old lady that used to live in the neighborhood. Cute little thing was fond of running all over the place, and eating things he wasn't supposed to, until one day, when his owner left the gate opened, little Romero had run off and then, he was struck by a car. He was too small. The car had literally turned him into poodle pudding. One of his eyes was gone. Tiny teeth torn and broken. Little head opened apart, like Sakura's had been all those years back.

The dog had been dead when Kotaro saw him in the old master's basement. An hour later, the pooch was alive, running and growling and barking, looking all wrong. He was now playing with a cat that looked just as wrong as him, but it was less noticeable, despite being all bloated.

Kotaro, for his part, was hyperventilating, unable to believe what had happened right in front of his eyes. The old man stands besides him, cleaning his hands with a towel.

"Seven years ago," he begins, ignoring the panicking man beside him. "Seven years ago, a man, just like yourself, wandered into my bar. He was already drunk. He was already miserable...more so than you had been…" He put a hand on Kotaro's shoulder, making him jump, but holding him still enough that he could guide the younger man's sight towards the playing animals. "I showed him this, too...the cat is a result of that fateful meeting." Romero and the cat rolled around; the cat had lost its tail and a leg in the fateful struggle.

"I-it's leg f-fell off…" Kotaro managed to say, pointing at the cat. The master nodded, smiling softly.

"That happens...their bodies are the ones they died with and as a consequence they fall apart too quickly...depending on their injuries, of course. This cat, Fushi, belonged to a toddler and his mother. Cat was found by a little monster, the next door neighbor...tore the cat's limbs off before drowning it in a sack."

Kotaro just stared at the man. "...wh-what?"

"It's dead," the man answered, nodding at the two animals. "I stitched the poor thing back together as best as I could and fixed her right up. Animals are easy. Their minds protest so very little when they are returned to life…"

Kotaro was staring at Romero and Fushi, playing without a care in the world. Now, Romero had lost his head, and Fushi was batting it about like if it were a ball of yarn.

"Humans...we are the complicated ones…" The master said, nodding, letting go of Kotaro's shoulder to walk over to the two animals. He placed Romero's head back in place and fixed up Fushi's tail and leg back into her body. The two animals went on with their wrestling as the master walked over to Kotaro. "...we think too much...the body is different, you see…" He pointed at the animals. "They know how to live the moment they awaken...humans don't. Humans are too troublesome. Their emotions run too high, too low. Minds break so easily."

"...what?" Kotaro was finally calming down; his emotions had run their course, the animals no longer looked like monsters, no matter how much the dog stretched, no matter how much the cat's tail fell off. He was listening now, paying attention, getting interested.

(going a little crazy...Sakura's ghost whispering in his ear; move on, move on, leave me here, leave me dead)

The master nodded. "Humans are complex creatures," he explained. "Cats, dogs, rodents, you name it...they are not as complex...mentally, anyway. They wake up and they know. They wake up and they do. Humans...humans shamble around like headless chickens...they lose themselves to their instincts, lose themselves to their death…" He gave Kotaro a sidelong glance before staring back at Romero and Fushi. The cat was leaking water and Romero was licking it, making a face when he realized it didn't taste good at all.

"...but they...they can come back too?"

"Of course. But they are still dead, see?" the master pointed at the two animals, Romero with his stitched up little face and missing eye, bloated Fushi with her missing tail. "Dead is dead. They are not alive, so much as pretending they  _are_."

"So...so they're zombies?" the young man asked; his breathing had calmed, his head was clearing but the headache was still there, Sakura's ghost was still there.

The master shrugged. "I suppose…"

Kotaro turned to the man, hands no longer shaking, heart beating with mad excitement. "And...and does it work on humans?"

"It works on the dead." Was the simple answer, except that didn't answer anything.

"But it works?"

"It works...but, there's a price to pay for this knowledge," the man told him, eyes stern, eyebrow raised. "Are you willing to pay the price?"

Suddenly, Kotaro wasn't so sure anymore.

He had been so excited before, a part of him anxious to see his old friend again, living, dead, didn't matter, she would be here and all would be well but the other part was disgusted. Disgusted at his feelings, disgusted at his thoughts, disgusted at everything...disgusted at the bloating cat, the eyeless dog, everything. He was taking a risk, he realized.

This was nothing like going to California. Nothing like getting lost in Beverly Hills before making a turn to Hollywood after losing all his money and luggage. California he could handle. Had handled like a pro. He had lost money, he had hanged out with the homeless, he had made himself work hard to where he was now...unemployed and without passion. What more could he lose?

But then, if he managed it, what was he planning to do?

If he brought Sakura back, then what?

Was he going to live all his life with a corpse? A corpse that might not remember him? A corpse that might hate him? A corpse that wanted to die?

(he was almost afraid...afraid for Sakura...afraid to see her overtaken by the dark thoughts that made her lose her smile, made her lose her will to keep going)

He needed time...or maybe, he just needed a plan. A plan. A plan for what?

Kotaro was planning to go against the laws of nature. Play god. Bring the dead back to life all for the sake of a girl. A girl that he still loved. A girl that was dead. A girl who tried and failed...A girl, who…

...who wanted to be an idol.

Kotaro, still Inui, remembered Sakura's dream. Remembered how much she had told him and Shiro about it.

"I want to smile like that girl…" she used to say. "I want to share that stage and smile like her."

Kotaro was nodding, unshed tears on his eyes.

If nothing else, he'll make sure Sakura achieved her dream. Death wouldn't be a problem going forward. Sakura would be an idol, even if it killed him. That was the least he could do for what he was about to do. What he was about to pay.

(dead, dead, leave her dead, the ghost whispered)

"...okay, okay," Kotaro began, nodding again.

The master was just looking at him, face stern, dog and cat playing on the side. "So, you will pay it?"

"...yes."

They stared at each other; the master still stern, still calm, while Kotaro's face was bruised, sweaty with perspiration.

"Hmm…you know...that man from seven years ago was a tad bit smarter than you," the master said after a while, shaking his head. "He left with my secret. He left it well alone."

"I'm not him."

"I figured...well, Tatsumi...are you ready to learn? Are you ready to pay?"

(the ghost, the ghost, where had it gone?)

"Y-yes…"

"Then...let us begin."

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Two years later, Kotaro finally does it.

He has managed his first revival by himself; the ashes belonged to a woman by the name of Yamada Tae. Beyond her name, Kotaro didn't know who she had been in life or how her life had come to an end. The ashes had been provided to him by the master, who already had them in his possession.

The process of Tae Yamada's revival had been simple but not without its risks.

Kotaro had been nervous when he had tried it.

The master had warned him he only had one chance to do the revival, only one chance to bring Sakura back to life.

"Ashes and earth are required to bring forth the dead...bury the ashes, water the earth with the elixir and in a few hours, a body grows from within," the man had explained. The master had tried many other different methods during the years but this one produced the best results. It wasn't like reviving Romero and Fushi, whose bodies, still decomposing, still dead, had to be stitched together again, replacing skin and bones and insides in order to bring them back. His elixir made sure they wouldn't rot, wouldn't break apart (sometimes) as they went on being the living dead.

The process had taken place in an old mansion, far away from prying eyes. It was an old western-looking thing, that seemed too old to still be standing. There was a playground there, as well, and that's where Kotaro made the hole, the hole where he would bury the ashes of the one called Tae Yamada. The master watched, sitting on one of the swings, looking rather silly despite the seriousness of the situation. Romero sat by his side too, watching, waiting.

Urn in hand, Kotaro grabbed the ashes in fistfuls and put them in the hole, until nothing remained. Then, he buried the ashes again, and once that was done, Kotaro took out a small vial with golden liquid. He had remembered staring at it for some time before he began to water the earth with it, small drops first before using it all up. Once it was finished, he stood up, walked over to the swings and waited.

Hours later, a hand sprouted from the depths of the earth. It twitched, grasp at nothing, twitching once or twice, before another hand joined it and then, she dug herself out. She was slow at first, struggling to understand what she was doing but once she did, she was out, free from the earth. Pink flesh, long black hair, eyes as red as blood. Tae Yamada was back again.

The master and Kotaro had moved to cover the young woman with a blanket before taking her inside the mansion.

A few hours later, her skin began to rot. Flesh began to cut itself, legs and arms began to Yamada was literally falling apart before his eyes.

Kotaro remembered the panic he had felt when it had happened but the master had expected it.

"Her body is artificial...made out of earth, made out of the dead...she will decompose until a certain point, she will be a corpse again but she will be, in essence, alive."

Kotaro bandaged the cuts, put her limbs back together and gave her clothes. Tae shambled about the house, guarded by the little Romero, living but not really living, as Kotaro watched.

The master had left a few days ago, leaving behind the price to pay; Yugiri's urn.

(the man's price, his lost love)

That had been the deal: revive Yugiri, give her a better life and the master would tell him the secret, would tell him how to bring back his old friend.

And then, he would make her an idol and Tae and Yugiri will be there to help her.

At least, that had been the plan.

Things had changed in the last two years; Kotaro had seen and learned so many things, he had seen the changes that time had brought, changes that time destroyed.

Love was no longer on his mind. His feelings had changed, and so had his goals.

It wasn't just about achieving his friend's dream anymore. It was about making a true change, making a difference. At least, that was his excuse nowadays.

A part of him knows Sakura and those other two can't do it alone; he remembers the past, the tragedies, does his research and makes some calls. He finds the best of the best, legends in their own right.

(more people that deserved more than an early death)

All these girls were legendary, but not Sakura.

Sakura had never had a chance to be anything but a jinx.

Kotaro was going to change that.

But he only had one shot.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Months later, the mansion is full of shambling corpses. All legends, except one.

Ai Mizuno and Junko Konno walk side by side, knocking into each other once or twice, ignoring everything else. Saki Nikaido walks around too, she's more aggressive, sometimes pushing and biting the others when they get in her way. Lily Hoshikawa just walks about, turns, and walks about again before slamming into a wall and just walking, walking. Yugiri is much the same, she's rather calm about it, however, rarely groaning and whining. Tae Yamada is much more adventurous. She's the most active of the bunch, biting into things, chewing them, spitting them out. That was just Tae.

And then, there was Sakura Minamoto.

She's more aggressive than Nikaido. She bites, growls and one time even tackled him, biting unto his arm. Kotaro still has the scar to prove it.

He remembers being taken aback by her aggression and when he had asked, the master couldn't really provide him an answer.

And then, one day, she gets out.

She broke a window and ran into the night. Someone had seen her, she had seen them, she had growled, showed teeth and would have jumped them had they not ran off. Kotaro and Romero found her a few minutes later, scratching and biting a lamppost. Then, she tackled him, growling, spitting, Romero barking and growling back.

It had taken him ten minutes to control her and bring her back to the mansion.

He kept her separated from the other girls after that. He never had the heart to leave them in the old dungeon, behind bars and metal. He risked one of them getting out like Sakura had done but he took his chances and left them roam free. Sakura was the only one he kept under lock and key. He was afraid she would harm herself or the others (even if they were already dead).

The only times Sakura was ever calm was when she slept. Those were the only times Kotaro could get close to her, whisper to her, talk about the old times, and apologize for what he had done.

He applies the makeup while she sleeps, she opens her eyes once, dead red eyes stare at him before closing seconds later. Kotaro is too nervous to continue but he goes about it, wondering if she sees her reflection, she'll wake up and be whole again.

But he's been trying for days and Sakura is still aggressive, still biting, still growling, still dead.

And then, one day, everything changes.

(he forgets to lock the door)

Sakura wakes up, and instead of screaming and growling, she's frightened. Growls and groans become words, eyes show more life than they had in months. She's confused, she's scared and she ends up running off a second time.

She's forgotten him, she's forgotten everything.

And for a while, Kotaro is happy she can't remember. He almost fears what would happen if she does.

* * *

A few days before the inevitable happens, Sakura finally takes notice of the guy. He's dressed all in black, hiding in the back, staring at Yugiri. Just staring, staring.

Saki's been looking his way too, already knows he's there and she doesn't like it. She's someone that can tell he's trouble.

And Sakura knows he's trouble, too and she's worried.

This is nothing like the mess with Takeo and Lily; the big man had made himself obvious, had made himself known right away and then Saki had kicked the daylights out of him and broken a stereo. This guy's not even close. He hid too well.

No one notices the ones in the back. No one.

But now, Sakura and Saki know that he's there. Sakura's anxious, Saki's pissed. They worry for Yugiri and already Saki is telling Sakura what she'll do to the bastard if he gets anywhere close to their big sister. "I'll break him in half." But Sakura is still worrying.

She can tell right away that something's off.

Is he obsessed? Sakura doesn't really know.

She's worried about Yugiri, worried about what that stranger could do to her. Sakura wonders if Yugiri already knows about the looks, the stares. She probably has. Yugiri's observant like that.

How long has this been going on? How long had Yugiri kept this to herself?

(are they too late?)

The stranger is looking at her now. He sees her. His expression is cold, angry. Sakura stares back, eyes widening suddenly, confused, frightened but deep down something ignites. It's a feeling she had not felt in a while. A feeling she detests. She felt it back when she was alive, back when her classmates would laugh at her bad luck, would laugh at her mistakes, would laugh at her dreams of being an idol.

How long was it that Sakura had been genuinely angry? She hadn't been angry at Saki that first time, she had been irritated, annoyed, slightly upset, but not angry. She had felt slight anger towards Kotaro during the camping trip, true, but it had extinguished like a candle in the wind. What was different now?

Was it because this stranger was leering at her friend? Was it that? Or was it something else?

(it was Yugiri)

So, Sakura stares back, expression slowly changing, shiny blue eyes glaring back. The stranger looks away suddenly, as if realizing his mistake but Sakura already knows.

Her gaze softens when she turns away and catches sight of Yugiri, and then, Sakura shakes her head. She dares one last look at the stranger but the guy is already gone.

(and they were too late)


	13. Stab in the Heart, You're Too Late

**13 / Stab in the Heart, You're Too Late**

Growing up, Yugiri had always been told to trust her instincts. It was a lesson her old teacher had imparted time and time again; trust your instincts and you'll survive.

The courtesan had seen many men lose themselves to their passion, to their anger, to their grief, to their terribleness; the violent ones looked like everyone else.

(and who would care if the whore was dead?)

Her teacher was only seventeen when Yugiri was introduced to her. Yugiri was seven then, already beautiful, already the makings of a legend and her teacher, smiling, told her so. At twenty-two, the woman had left. A man had bought her contract and they had rode into the sunset. Her teacher left her, offering a smile and the same advice, "Trust your instincts". Yugiri was just twelve, then, already excelling in the arts, in writing, in everything; at thirteen, she became a courtesan, and just months later, slept with her first client. Eventually, as she excelled, Yugiri rose through the ranks, living in luxury as her manager grew greedier and fatter and the glares of her peers surrounded her. And then, one day, she perished.

Oh, she had struggled as the blade came to her neck. Her attacker had revealed themselves too early. Yugiri had panicked, of course. The blade had been so close, so close, so much pain. Her instincts had flared up too late and she had lost her head.

Nowadays, Yugiri didn't have to worry too much about danger.

The modern world was relatively safe...for a zombie, anyway. So long as she didn't lose her head, she'll be fine.

...except she didn't feel fine.

Her instincts were flaring up again. Danger was afoot. Or something close to it.

Yugiri had noticed the young man during one of their shows, a few weeks after Arpino. It only took one look for the courtesan to recognize the lust, the wanting.

Many of their fans, mostly young men, had directed similar looks her way. Her bandmates would get their share of looks, too. Most of them were innocent enough, that much Yugiri could recognize.

The young man, on the other hand, was a different sort of beast altogether. But Yugiri figured he would get bored. They always did. Men were like that. If you weren't satisfying enough, they'll move on.

(but then again, she was dead because one of them just couldn't move on)

Since the young man had done nothing (yet), Yugiri just kept watch, kept her distance with the rest of Franchouchou none the wiser. But lately, Saki had been glaring a little too much, and Sakura, sweet Sakura, would have such a strange expression on her pretty face, looking once or twice in the distance before going to Yugiri and making small talk, keeping her within her sights, sometimes moving within the line of sight of the boy. Saki did the same thing too when she went to talk to her and that had been enough to confirm that they knew. They had seen him.

Yugiri should have known.

Their leader was used to the danger and could recognize it a mile away and if she knew, their second-in-command wouldn't be far behind. Sakura had probably suggested that they keep an eye on Yugiri for fear that the stranger would try to do something stupid.

Yugiri is touched; she should have expected it, really. Sakura and Saki were, in a strange way, the ones that looked after them. Saki with her roughness and Sakura with her kindness.

(but they had been too late)

* * *

The meet-and-greet ended with very little problems a few minutes ago; Kotaro was talking to the organizers while the last of the fans left and the rest of Franchouchou began putting the remaining merchandise away. Leftover photos, a few signed autographs, t-shirts that never sold out.

While Sakura was busy controlling Tae, Ai, Junko, Lily and Yugiri were putting things away. Saki had gone over to talk with their manager, returning a few minutes later, the car keys in her hands. Their leader nodded the courtesan's way.

"Shades asked one of us to get the car ready, you know...the usual. Here. I'll go and help the Egghead keep Tae under control." Standing on the stage, Sakura let out a yelp as Tae escaped her grip. Luckily, no limbs had been lost in this endeavor. Saki shook her head and Yugiri tried not to laugh, offering an amused smile instead. From what they could vaguely gather from Tae's behavior, it appeared the older woman had caught a whiff of something and had made it her job to find it and eat it.

Yugiri took the keys from Saki and nodded.

The courtesan just needed to head out back, start the car and wait for the rest of the girls and Kotaro and then, they'll be home free. Kotaro had figured that they should always be ready for a quick getaway, just in case.

It was a simple job.

Nodding at her other friends, Yugiri left for the back door. The van had been parked just a bit away from the back entrance of the convention center.

It was outside, under the moonlight, that Yugiri felt her instincts flare up.

She had not noticed the stranger until she approached the van. He had been hiding behind the vehicle, using it as cover, waiting, only revealing himself until Yugiri got closer.

He had a smile on his face, a hand behind his back while the other was busy waving at the courtesan.

Yugiri just stood there, keys in hand. The van was lonely behind him, looking so far away. Most of the parking lot was empty. Almost everyone had already left. Now, it was just Yugiri and the stranger.

"Hello, Five," the young man began, inching closer; a hand still behind his back, the other held out as if he wanted to shake the courtesan's hand. Yugiri stood still, staring at him. "Hello, hello…" he repeated and Yugiri just stared.

The courtesan wasn't frightened. She had been alone with many men in her time to truly be frightened by the mere presence of this stranger. Yugiri's eyes narrowed, realizing what he was trying to pull...that was, if his stunt involved anything beyond friendly greetings. If someone else had been asked to get the car ready, Yugiri didn't even want to think about it.

"Five…" he called again, his smile getting wider. He was getting closer, approaching slowly, hand still behind his back. He was still too far. Yugiri needed to be closer to defend herself should the stranger try anything. She could strike his neck, leave him breathless. He'll live and she'll be gone. Simple. "Five, Five," he went on, still too far, getting closer. "Won't you leave with me?" Not close enough. He was still too far, too far out of reach.

Yugiri's gaze hardened, stopping the young man in his tracks momentarily. It appeared that he hadn't expected that. "I think not."

"Wh-what?"

"You heard me…" Yugiri continued, uncaring at the hurt look that appeared on the stranger's face, uncaring of what the stranger hid behind his back. "I suggest you leave. Now."

"..wha-what!? Five...why…?" The stranger's face breaks into shock, unable to believe the words she's saying. He tries approaching her, eyes wide, hand still behind his back. Yugiri stays her ground. He's closer now...getting closer for her strike andー

"Five!"

Behind them, someone is calling for Yugiri.

The courtesan turns, eyes widening slightly when she sees Sakura approaching, looking mighty nervous as she gets closer.

With Yugiri distracted, she cannot see the stranger's face. Can't see how his expression turns cruel and angry the closer Sakura gets. Sakura doesn't notice the looks either, she's more concerned about Yugiri and getting her out of the situation as fast as she can. "O-one?" Yugiri begins, stammering slightly. "What are you…?"

"Manager's calling for us." A lie. Yugiri's sure of it. Sakura's staring at the side, she never stares to the side unless she's unsure about something, unless she's nervous. It was a bad habit. "S-so! I came to get you! Co-come on!" Sakura moved to grab Yugiri's hand, both still oblivious at the stranger behind them.

Yugiri should have never lost sight of the stranger.

(it happened so fast)

The stranger let out a snarl, running between the two girls, glaring at Sakura and before Yugiri or Sakura could react…

...there was a knife buried deep in Sakura's chest.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Okoba felt like he had been nursing a headache all day.

He had not been sleeping well for the past few days, the coffee had finally ran out and everyone back at the office had commented that he looked like he had seen one too many ghosts.

It was a story Okoba couldn't really explain. How do you explain to your coworkers that you drank almost half a cabinet of sake in just a few days? How you finished all the coffee in your house and how, in between all that drinking, you found out that the dead had come back to life?

Well, actually, scratch that last part about the dead.

Okoba was a reasonable man. He understood the difference between the impossible and the possible and reviving the dead fell into the impossible category. That was just a given. It was also possible that those bottles had done most of the thinking for him that day, so there was that. He was just thinking too much about it.

The most likely explanation was that the girls just looked alike and nothing more. Sure, Three and Four sounded almost exactly like the deceased Ai Mizuno and Junko Konno but that didn't really prove anything. There were people out there that had the same voice, had the same face. It was inevitable that that would happen once in a lifetime.

Still, curiosity was a bitch and so, here he was again.

A few days prior, he had began tracking Franchouchou's movements; concerts here, meet-and-greets there.

The girls had been extra busy ever since they released that calendar months back. His assistant managed to snag one during a concert and had showed it to Okoba.

It was a pretty thing; twelve pictures in all for each month but it was one picture in particular that caught his attention and, privately, freaked him out a bit.

The picture in question was the one from October, where the girls disguised themselves as the living dead. They were dressed casually, skin blue almost rotten, a few bandages here and there, some stitches, a dog in the middle and One and Three's heads were in the hands of Five and Four respectively. The girls had made for very convincing corpses.

Okoba still remembers gulping when he had seen the picture.

People online, however, had just commented that the effects of the picture were well-made and despite freaking out a few of their fans, they loved it for being on point with Halloween. Some began to speculate that Franchouchou was planning a Halloween special at some point. The girls could certainly pull it off, if the makeup was anything to go by.

As of now, here he was, in the mostly empty parking lot of the convention center where the girls had just had their latest meet-and-greet. The event had ended a few minutes ago, cars had emptied the lot, and Okoba was just hanging about, hoping to catch the girls and their mysterious manager. Although he still wasn't so sure what he'll say  _if_  he caught up to them. What did he want to say, anyways? "Hey, I noticed that your girls look like the dead...may I ask you some questions?"

Yeah, right. That'll go over pretty well.

Okoba didn't even know what he was waiting for. What he wasーhuh?

There, hiding behind the van, barely visible against the growing night, was a young man. The guy was tall, maybe twenty or twenty-two years old, Okoba couldn't really tell. He wore all black. Black shirt, black pants, black jacket. Black everything.

Okoba was already getting bad vibes just looking at him. The stranger had something in his hands that he kept examining over and over but the reporter was too far away to tell what it was.

Not really sure what to make of the whole thing, Okoba stood his distance and waited.

(a few hours later, Okoba realized he should have called the police before everything escalated)

The reporter immediately noticed one of the girls exiting the building and approaching the van. He immediately recognized the girl as Five, the bewitching beauty of the group (the one that looked like the dead courtesan, Yugiri). Five hadn't seen the boy yet, and by then, it was just a matter of time.

Okoba didn't know what to do. He was too far away. He could still see them but if the guy tried something, even running wouldn't change a damn thing. If the reporter was noticed before the stranger tried anything, chances are that that weirdo would panic and do something stupid and then, it would all be over. Whatever  _it_  was.

The man couldn't really make out what they were saying but it was obvious from Five's body language that she was having none of it. Probably took the guy by surprised, too, if his reaction was anything to go by. And then, One appeared. She was walking a little too fast towards Five, she stopped, she talked and tried to pull Five away andー

Okoba hadn't seen the knife yet. He just saw movement, the stranger pushing Five and One apart before crying out, "BITCH!" a knife in his hands, plugging it deep unto One's chest.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Sakura didn't really know how to react to the knife that was currently buried deep in her chest.

She was dead, so it didn't matter and yet, the pain was coming. It was slow, slow and scary. That was the weird thing, really. She was already dead so pain shouldn't have been a problem.

It was hard to remind her brain of that, however.

Saki had complained about it once or twice. About the pain.

Their brains, despite being as rotten as their bodies, still worked quite well. Their nerves still worked. They could feel what they had felt in life, dead or not. Sometimes, the pain was there, sometimes it just wasn't. There had been no pain when that lightning hit them. Their fingers had felt itchy for a few days however, but other than that, nothing more. Junko had mentioned feeling faint for a bit after Kotaro accidentally ran her over but the pain was just a memory as soon as she got up again. Anything else they suffered was mainly discomfort. But Sakura remembers that odd burning in her throat when that wild boar tried to eat her head and how long it lasted before disappearing one day. And when that second truck hit her, well, Sakura couldn't really remember any pain.

They were dead and yet they still felt alive.

And now, Sakura was short of breath, her eyes were losing focus and the pain, oh, the pain. It seemed insufferable one second and manageable the next, rinse and repeat. Her brain couldn't rightly decide what she was feeling; are you dying? are you dead?

The knife was the problem, really. It had made her brain forget she was dead. Maybe if she took it out, she'll be fine again. But, ah, her brain was still lost. Pain, pain, calm, pain again.

Sakura barely reacted when Yugiri grabbed unto her, holding her close before she cried out, a glare on her pretty face before striking the stranger in the neck with a well-placed chop. The stranger gasped, holding unto his neck, breathing hard. Yugiri pushed him aside, her attention on Sakura. But Sakura couldn't see Yugiri. Her eyes were lost, she was breathing fast, she was unable to comprehend what was happening even as Yugiri helped her sit down. Her friend turned towards the stranger again but Sakura didn't know what was happening. She couldn't breath, the pain, the pain...gone...no, it was back again...pain, pain.

The stranger had recovered his breath and was staring at Yugiri, then at Sakura and the knife he had buried on her chest and then...he fell. He was falling. Sakura's eyes lost focus again, so she didn't see Kotaro Tatsumi appear, radiating rage as he held onto an old shovel, staring through dark lenses at the stranger by his feet.

And the pain was still there. Still there...there...

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Okoba couldn't believe his eyes; he wanted to cry out but his throat was suddenly dry, his heart beating like a drum.

The man had just watched some weirdo stab a girl right in the heart.

(he's too far away, he's not sure...and oh god!)

One was breathing hard, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Five, on the other hand, reacted with mild panic and rage. The older girl moved quickly, like a viper, striking the stranger in the neck and pushing him as far away from her injured bandmate as possible.

And then, just as quickly, the weirdo was falling to his knees, then he was on the pavement. There was a man standing behind him. He had sunglasses and was holding a shovel in one hand.

But Okoba took little notice of it all. He moved to grab his phone, hands fumbling due to his own growing panic. He couldn't get the damn thing out of his pocket. His hands were shaking, his eyes were glued at the girl. The girl called One with a knife sticking out of her chest.

(oh god, oh god! That girl was dead! That girl was dying! Quick, quick! Call an ambulance!)

Okoba moved his eyes away for just a second, his phone still stuck on his pocket. He turned towards the group again, hoping, wondering, if they had called for help yet. Except, they hadn't.

The man was kneeling before One, whispering, talking to her, trying to get her attention. Five, too, talked to her, she seemed slightly panicked but she didn't let go of One. Still, the injured girl did not respond.

When Okoba finally, finally, got his phone out of his pocket he heard a loud gasp. It was the rest of Franchouchou. They carried a few boxes and some equipment but they threw it to the ground the moment they spotted One and Five in the ground. They rushed towards the man and the two girls, a few of them panicking upon seeing the knife still sticking out of One's chest. The girl, Zero, let out a loud growl, glaring at the weirdo in the floor and would have jumped at him had Two not held her back. The others, Three, Four, Five and Six, crowded around One, blocking her from sight.

No one was calling an ambulance. No one was calling for help. And for a moment, Okoba isn't so sure what to think, what to do. He has his phone, he could justー

The man with sunglasses gets close to the group, both hands on who Okoba can only assume is One, before a small cry breaks into the night and then, there's a loud  _clank_ , as steel meets pavement. Okoba can barely make out the knife as it's thrown to the side, as far away from the group as possible. Immediately, the girls are on their feet, Three and Five helping One to her own and now Okoba can see One clearly. The middle of her shirt is ripped right where the knife had been buried. Her eyes are lost, her breathing still harsh. The girls are already guiding One towards the van, the sliding door already opened thanks to Six.

For a moment, Okoba just stands there, shocked. He's about to run towards them, demand to know what the hell they are doing...their friend needs to go to the hospital! She's dying! She's bleeding to death! She's...she's…

...Okoba still sees One as Five and Three help her sit down.

There's no blood.

The knife had penetrated skin, the ripped fabric was proof of that.

Even from this distance, Okoba should have seen the blood. At least a bit of it. One's shirt was a light color, the blood would have been too noticeable. But there's no blood. There's a knife. There's a weirdo but no blood.

And suddenly, Okoba is back where he started. He's seeing ghosts. He's seeing the dead. He remembers Minamoto and her broken head. He remembers Nikaido and her crash. He remembers Mizuno and the lightning. He remembers Konno and the plane. He remembers Yugiri and time. He remembers Hoshikawa and her heart.

Okoba takes a deep breath, pockets his phone, and as fast as he can, starts walking the opposite direction. He walks as fast as his legs can take him, far away, far away from the girl with no blood, far away from his thoughts, hoping that no one has seen him.

He's almost out of the parking lot when he hears the van start and seconds later, it's gone.

Okoba stops walking.

They didn't see him.  _They didn't see him._

Then, he turns and runs towards where he last saw the van. Okoba finds the weirdo sitting on a bench, not too far away from where the van was parked. He goes to check on him. The guy's still breathing. There's a bump forming on the back of the weirdo's head. Okoba can make out the knife hiding under his belt.

Okoba turns away from the unconscious man towards the back entrance of the convention. There's nothing there. The boxes are gone. Probably left with their owners not too long ago. Then, Okoba turns towards the place he was sure One had fallen. There's no knife, there's no shovel, there's no blood, no nothing. Okoba kneels on the ground, feels it. Nothing but dirt and oil. There's no blood, no metallic smell.

Okoba slowly gets up. His face is turning pale, his hands are shaking as they begin to pass over his hair, messing it up, trying and failing, to hold unto something, anything that would keep him sane.

Reality was strange.

Reality was scary.

"Oh...g-god...oh, god...god…"

There's no blood. There's no blood. There's noー


	14. Aftermath and Cheese

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early update!

**14 / Aftermath and Cheese**

It had taken the girls ten minutes to get Sakura to react again.

Minutes ago, Sakura had just been so silent, staring with empty eyes at nothing as the others tried everything they could to get her attention. And then, she was back to normal again. Talking too fast for them to keep up, the panic finally setting in. Lily and Tae didn't let go of her until they got back to the mansion, the little girl crying in relief while the unawakened zombie growled affectionately as she bit her friend gently on her shoulder.

Once they arrived at the mansion, the girls were rushing Sakura back to their room to properly check on her and as she was walking behind them, Yugiri felt a hand on her shoulder. Kotaro was shaking his head. The courtesan understood immediately.

She glanced one final time at the girls, nodded once, and soon was following Kotaro to his office.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Kotaro's office is as pristine as always; there's the computer, his desk, his books, everything in neat order. It faintly reminds Yugiri of her old manager's old room. There's less technology, less books, but the look is a bit familiar. The only times she was called to see the man was to tell her that her contract had been extended. Too much expenses, he'll say. But Kotaro wasn't her old manager. He had his weird quirks, his strange expectations. Yugiri knew the difference.

The man cared in his own, weird way.

He had been there for Junko and Ai and Lily and Sakura even for Saki when she decided to intervene with her old gang's problems.

Yugiri suppose it was her turn now.

"So...when did it start?"

Yugiri is staring to the side, suddenly shy for the first time in her undead life. Kotaro crosses his arms over his chest, staring at her through his dark glasses. He's not judging, he's waiting.

"I would say...some days after Arpino," Yugiri finally says. Kotaro sighs, as if he somehow hadn't expected that response.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Yugiri finds herself unable to answer; she's from a much more different world, a different time. The courtesan had learned to cope when things got bad, had learned to keep it together, had learned to go with the flow. No one, besides her old teacher, had been there to hold her and tell her that things would get better.

But Yugiri had died too young, she had never had a chance to be free.

(Yugiri was alive again, different time, different life)

"Yugiri…?"

"I was...careless," Yugiri finally says, her eyes still staring to the side, avoiding Kotaro's frown.

They both stay silent after that. Kotaro's still frowning but he seems to understand. Yugiri's still not looking at him, wishing that this meeting would just be over so she can go and check on Sakura.

(because she got careless, her friend was hurt...she had no friends back then...it had never happened before)

"This isn't your old job, you know..." Yugiri blinks. She turns to stare at Kotaro. He's still frowning but he doesn't sound angry. "I'm not like that old boss of yours...if you have a problem, one that's out of your control, that's what I'm here for...you can talk to me...or the girls, it doesn't matter." He turns to the side, expression unreadable. "You helped Sakura, right? They are your friends, talk to them if you can't talk to me…" Yugiri can't help but offer him a smile.

Yugiri bows. "Thank you, Lord Kotaro…"

Kotaro turns back to her, silent, before standing up from his seat, slamming both hands on the desk. "Yeah! You better thank me!" he cries out. "What the hell was all that about!? Next time, tell me! I'll whack them weirdos outta of your sight, get it!? Now, shoo, shoo! I got things to do!" Yugiri tries not to laugh as she takes her leave.

Of course.

Lord Kotaro never disappoints with his moods.

(that man should really be more honest with his feelings)

Once she closed the door behind her, Yugiri immediately spotted Saki and Sakura from the corner of her eye. Both of them are leaning against the wall, Saki has her arms crossed over her chest while Sakura has her hands behind her back, head looking down. Sakura was already wearing a different shirt, one of their fabulous Franchouchou shirts. Yugiri could also see that some of her makeup had fallen off, revealing a bit of her rotten flesh.

(had they already stitched her injury, she wonders)

Sakura sees her first, immediately perking up which catches Saki's attention. Their leader turns towards Yugiri, blinking, before a big smile decorates her face. Both girls approached their friend. "Heya, big sis! You hanging okay, there? We heard Shades from a mile away." Yugiri smiles.

"Lady Sakura, Lady Saki...yes, everything is fine. He's...excitable as always."

Sakura lets out a small sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness...for a minute there I thought he was planning to give you a hard time...I mean, it wasn't really your fault."

"Heh," Saki scoffed, glaring. "Bastard's lucky he didn't run into me...Shades should have hit him more than once. Hell, I should have let Tae bite him for good measure." Sakura frowned.

"Saki…"

"What? After what he did to you, that creep deserved more than a whack in the head!"

Sakura is silent for a bit before saying, "I don't think we need the extra bodies."

Saki and Yugiri laugh.

"Hehehe! Guess not!" their leader replies with a big grin. "Jerk had it coming anyhow...on the plus side, he's paying for our meals tomorrow, which is the least he could have done!" Saki got out a wad of bills from her pocket and showed them off. Sakura's eyes widen while Yugiri tilted her head. "Guy was loaded!"

"Saki!" Sakura began. "You didn't…"

"What? Shades thought it would be smart if it looked like the guy had gotten mugged while out there being a creeper. Besides, he totally deserved it."

Sakura shook her head. "Stealing is wrong, though…" The ex-biker gave her a look.

"So is stabbing people."

"W-well..."

"I believe Lady Sakura wasn't defending his actions…" Yugiri interrupted gently. "...she was concerned about yours." Saki just shrugged.

"Hey, that's how we made money in Dorami...guys like him were easy pickings." Sakura sighed, shaking her head while Yugiri nodded in understanding as Saki put the money away. "Come on...Ai managed to find an interesting channel on that old boombox. We got a bit of popcorn and some sweets...we need all the treats we can to end this shitty day, after all…" Saki turned away and began walking followed closely behind by Sakura before Yugiri called them.

"Ah, a moment, please, Lady Saki," Yugiri began, causing the two girls to stop and look her way. "I was...no...I…" Yugiri shook her head. "...will it be possible to speak to Lady Sakura? Alone." Sakura blinked in confusion at her friend while Saki stared at them both, glancing at the pink haired zombie and then at the courtesan. The ex-biker grinned and nodded the older woman's way.

"Sure, sure...talk it out. I'll tell the others you'll be there in a bit." Saki patted Sakura's shoulder, lightly pushing her towards Yugiri before she was off, leaving the two zombies alone in the hallway.

Sakura glanced once at Saki before shyly turning to look at Yugiri. "Umm…"

"Sakura...I…"

"If it's about today, it's okay!"

"I don't think so…" Yugiri told her with a shake of her head. "Sakura, you…"

"Ah...this…" the pink haired zombie felt her chest; there was a small bandage covering her new wound. They'll probably have to stitch it close tomorrow. "It's not really the worst thing that's happened to me, really...I mean, I'm dead, so…" Yugiri's gaze turns stern, causing Sakura to raise her hands in defense. "I...I mean…! I did get shot once, too! S-so...this new thing...it's nothing! It's nothing!"

"I hardly think it was just nothing," Yugiri told her. "Sakura...you were in shock...you hardly reacted when we called for you...until recently you barely spoke a word to us." Sakura looked a bit more nervous now.

"Uh...well...I did faint last time…so..."

"Sakura…"

The girl in question just shook her head. "Lo-look, Yugiri," she began. "...I know you're upset...I mean, why wouldn't you? What that guy did...well, it was crazy. But, you know this wasn't your fault, right?"

Yugiri stares at her sadly. "I fear it might be…"

"Why? Because you didn't tell anyone?" Sakura asks her and gets a nod in return. "I don't think it would have mattered...you don't carry a knife with you to make light conversation, I can tell you that much…" The pink haired girl passed a hand over her pretty hair. "I don't know if you had troubles like this in your old job but...what he did was on him, not on you."

(they never took her by surprise until now, Yugiri wanted to say)

"Still…"

But Sakura stops her by going and grabbing both her hands into her own, giving them a gentle squeeze as she offered the courtesan a small smile. "Listen…we got your back, right? You don't have to take care of everything by yourself...at least, not anymore." The courtesan stares at Sakura's smile for a bit before she offered the first genuine smile of the evening, a light coloring masking her cheeks.

"Ah...of course, thank you, Sakura."

Sakura laughs and nods, still holding onto Yugiri's hands. "Come on, then! Let's get going!"

It's as they're walking back to their dorm room to join the others that Yugiri realizes that Sakura has a beautiful smile.

* * *

Genji stretched, groaning as the joints on his back cracked. The young man sat on the bed, grumbling as he massaged a sore shoulder.

Sitting next to him, on top of the bedside table, was the flyer of the girl with the frozen smile. It had been folded neatly into a ball, as if to piece of paper itself had wished to give the young man some privacy as he got dressed for the day.

Once he had his clothes on and had brushed his hair just the way he liked it, Genji turned towards the bedside table and took the flyer. He unfolded the ball and stared at the crumpled paper with blue eyes. The girl and her friends smiled back. They were all rather happy, big smiles on their faces. It was a pretty little flyer, simple in design. The girls were at the center, smiling, glowing with life.

He had spotted the flyer some time back, just a few days after his flight had landed in Karatsu. Genji didn't have a care in the world and the first place he had decided to have dinner had this same flyer stapled on the wall. Little sweethearts, Genji remembered the cook telling him. The old lady had let him have the flyer and he had kept it since.

During that time, as he tried to figure out what was wrong with the world and the flyer, his mother had called him. She had worried over him, of course, like all mothers would. She had asked him about the flight and where he was staying and if he was planning to visit the old man back in Tokyo.

"Go out to lunch and have a chat with your father," was what she had told him.

But with this mysterious flyer and Franchouchou, Genji hadn't really made time. He still didn't know what would be the point. He never got a chance to have that chat with Sakura and now, he had to make do with the old man. It didn't seem like it would fix anything. He understood why his mother insisted upon it, though.

Genji had already lost his older sister and his mother didn't want him regretting the same things if for some reason (knock on wood) the old man was gone the next day. But Genji couldn't really make the time. The old man certainly had time to spend with his son, but still Genji didn't. Not with what was happening now. Not with what that flyer was showing him.

(and he was angry...angry that the old man had time now, and not when she had been alive...there was never time for him, never time for her…)

Genji had figured he'll probably have that talk before he went back home to Florida...at least, that had been the plan. And then, he saw the flyer and everything unraveled. He just needed to talk to the girl, the girl that looked so much like the dead, and then, it would all be over. He could have that talk and then he'll be gone. End of story.

And today was the big day; he had finally decided to go to one of Franchouchou's concerts. He had planned to go earlier but the girls had announced that they'll be taking a small break due to one of their own falling sick a few days back.

The concert was at six. There would be a meet-and-greet at eight, just after they finished their songs. And that's where he would talk to her. Tell her. Ask her...

(are you the dead?)

Genji needed to be careful, though. He didn't want to be seen as some sort of creeper. He had heard the story about that big guy that had appeared in one of their concerts, how Blondie had kicked him so hard she had not only knocked the man out but had also broken a stereo.

He already had a plan; it was simple.

The dead couldn't come back to life, he knew, but he hoped that  _she_  somehow had


	15. Zombies Ate My Sister!

**15 / Zombies Ate My Sister!**

Sakura had gotten used to being a zombie a while back; she's not exactly sure when she just accepted the fact that she was a rotting, living corpse. It wasn't that night when she first woke up and ran away. It wasn't when she had run into that police officer and got shot for her troubles. It wasn't during that first performance, when the others were still brain dead. It also wasn't in the performances that came after. Sakura's not really sure when she came to accept the fact that  _this_  was normal.

She was an undead idol and that was that.

She was just an undead idol with a stab wound on her chest.

The last few days had been a real hassle for Sakura despite not being alive. Sure, had Sakura actually been alive, the situation would have been a lot worse but that didn't explain the pain, didn't explain the exhaustion her body was exhibiting despite being dead.

Sakura had been exhausted the first few days after the attack.

The first day, she had woken up at noon, Yugiri massaging her back gently as the courtesan leaned against Lily, who munched on some cereal, listening intently at a show in the radio. The others too, were seated nearby, surrounding her in a circle, eating their own snacks. Tae was surprisingly well-behaved as she ate but all that came to an end when she noticed that Sakura had woken up. After cleaning up the scattered cereal, snacks and dried squid later, the girls had told Sakura that she had slept all morning and most had been worried due to the fact that Sakura wasn't waking up.

Ai had figured it was something to do with her stab wound and how her body was reacting to it. The Heisei idol thought it would be better if she slept it off and maybe she would get better by tomorrow.

The next day, Sakura had just wanted to sleep the whole day away.

Their manager had approached them as Sakura slept and told them that due to unforeseen circumstances (Sakura getting stabbed), they'll be taking the week off. He had already made some calls and rescheduled other events.

Kotaro had made a lie up about one of the idols catching a cold and spreading it to the rest.

On the plus side, no one had come calling their way. It appeared that Kotaro and Saki's plan to make it looked like that weirdo had been mugged had worked. With any luck, he wouldn't remember stabbing Sakura...not that he wouldn't try to do something worse in the future but at least, this time, everyone knew who to avoid.

Sakura eventually did recover but the others, Yugiri especially, insisted that she take it easy for a few days.

By the end of the week, Sakura was fine and was practicing with the others to make up for lost time. They did take a lot of breaks, however but Sakura didn't really mind. Her friends were worried and Sakura would rather not worry them if her body decided to act up again. At least she was no longer as exhausted as before and the pain she had felt from her stab wound was but a memory.

They had a concert in just a couple of days and Sakura was feeling great.

* * *

Genji was not feeling so great.

He was outside, in the cold, a half finished cigarette dangling from his lips, tapping his foot on the pavement with irritation. Behind him, illuminated by the moon and streetlights was the local convention center. Franchouchou's concert was already underway inside.

Genji let out a breath, smoke escaping his nostrils, as he took out his cellphone and checked the time. 7:30 p.m. Heh. So much for being prepared. And he had been so determined to get in and get this all over with...only to run outside and start smoking.

He's already smoking his second cigarette and watching time slowly pass by.

What the hell was he doing?

Genji wasn't so sure anymore.

He had been determined when he got here, he had made the long line and was almost inside when he suddenly got cold feet and left. He hid behind a streetlight and after a while, took out his first cigarette and smoked it away.

Genji was just wasting time at this point and even after days of mulling it over, going over through different scenarios in his head, he still didn't know what he'll do.

(dead was dead, Sakura was dead)

The young man sighed; more smoke, more time wasted.

7:35.

Genji put his phone away and threw his cigarette to the ground, quickly stepping on it to put the embers out. He let out a bit of smoke and glared at the building. He sighed and took out the flyer of the girl with the frozen smile. That same girl was also inside the building, singing, smiling, living…not dead.

He passed a hand over his hair, smoothing it over. He looked at the smiling girl on the flyer. Her smile wasn't all there now. The paper had wrinkles all over, white lines crossing over every face, even hers. Colors were already fading and soon enough, that smiling girl's eyes wouldn't look the same.

Genji kept staring at the flyer, glancing a few times at the building, taking out his phone with his other hand and checking the time.

7:45.

His eyes stared at the smiling girl on the flyer. Blue eyes like his, smile like hers. She was so close...why was he taking so long?

7:50.

...what did he want?

Genji took a deep breath, crumpled the flyer slowly, making sure to form it into a neat ball and he began walking towards the building. He uncrumpled the flyer once and crumpled it up again once he got in.

He heard the crowd and their cries...and then, he heard her voice. It was mixed up with the others but he could clearly hear it. It was familiar, it was...hers.

Genji threw the flyer to the nearest trash can and kept walking.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Sakura had spotted the stranger right as they were finishing their last song. She had almost messed up her part when she took notice of the young man hiding in the crowd.

Luckily, the crowd had not caught up to her mistake but the others had, with Yugiri sending her a worried look as the music stopped behind them.

The young man had disappeared into the crowd as the cheering began.

Sakura had tried looking for him, glancing around, trying to find the stranger that looked so familiar but he was gone.

Once backstage, Saki and Yugiri took her aside and asked her, worried, if her wound was acting up and if she needed to rest. Sakura had just shaken her head, smiled and told them that she was fine.

"Are you sure, Egghead?"

"Yes! I'm fine! I just thought…but...nevermind...I'm fine."

"Alright, then...if there's trouble you let me or big sis know, okay?"

Sakura nodded again, assuring them that she was fine before going to help the others get the merchandise ready for the meet-and-greet.

Saki and Yugiri watched her go, both frowning. "...she doesn't look sick to ya?"

The courtesan shook her head. "That was not it, Lady Saki."

"You think she thought she saw that creeper around…?"

"Perhaps."

Saki sighed. "Well, let's just keep ourselves on alert...in case it's another one…"

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Genji stood as far away as possible, hiding behind the crowd as the girls and a few of the organizers prepared the tables and placed the merchandise neatly on top. That man with the sunglasses was speaking into a microphone, telling people this and that and the line starts here and over there. Genji didn't really care. He wasn't paying attention.

The young man was looking at the girl with the dark pink hair and blue eyes; the girl that looked so much like Sakura, the sister who was dead.

One was her name. That's what everyone called her.

(what kind of name was that, anyway?)

Genji hadn't bothered to learn which girl was which. He only knew that One looked like Sakura and that the others were numbered zero to six.

At first, he had thought the the nicknames were weird, thought in the spur of the moment and suddenly they were idols. His second thought was that they were stupid. Well, Genji had heard worse.

One's line was already crowded, as with the other girls (minus Four, who was the shy one); her line had schoolgirls and boys, older men and a few older women and a few grandpas here and there. He also noticed the oddly dressed pair right in the front. Those two looked more at home in a metal concert than in an idol one. Both were talking excitedly as they made the line, making gestures here and there. Genji looked away for a moment to stare at One.

One was shaking hands and smiling, a few fans taking selfies with her as they moved to the other lines and began the process again and again.

Genji watch this repeat a few times. Smile, picture. Picture, autograph, smile. He closed his eyes. Damn it.

(her smile was the same even so far away)

How long had it been since the two siblings had taken a picture together? Had it been more than a decade? Maybe longer?

(it hurt)

Genji opened his eyes again and stared. The two men with the odd clothes were now talking with One, shaking hands and smiling. That chubby fellow was making a lot of gestures, laughing along with a blushing One as the tall one just shook his head with a strange sort of exasperation. Eventually, they left, waving to One as they did so. The two went their separate ways, the chubby one joining Two's line while the tall one went to Three's.

One already had a big smile in place to greet the next person.

(same smile, same face, dead girl)

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Sakura's been trying to find the familiar man for almost half an hour but she just can't seem to find him.

She meets fan after fan, glances around the room once, and smiles but she can't find him. It's as if he has disappeared into thin air. Sakura almost wonders if it's her mind that's playing tricks on her.

Still, she tries to keep herself composed and happy for the fans. She smiles, she listens to their stories, listens to their compliments, takes some pictures. But she's looking around, looking and not finding.

Was he there? Or was he nowhere?

Yugiri's been staring at her once or twice; she's as busy as the others but she still manages to make time to worry.

Sakura knows she's looking her way, knows she's still worried. Heck, she probably thinks the others are worried, too, but for other reasons. Their leader is also trying to be discreet of her looking about. She probably thinks that Sakura saw that crazy stalker fellow again and is keeping an eye out.

But it's a ghost that Sakura sees. Well, he's not dead...at least, Sakura hopes not.

She still can't see him and after an hour and a half of looking around, she gives up.

A new pair of fans show up. Sakura recognizes them. They are the schoolgirls that complimented her smile during that time when her memories had messed up and the past came back to haunt her.

One of them passed her a piece of paper, telling her that a fan of hers at the end of the line was super shy and asked them to give her a message.

Sakura smiles as she takes the folded paper, thanking them as she unfolds it and takes a look. Her eyes widen, her smile freezes in place. She reads the message once, twice, in her head, wondering if her brain's playing tricks on her again. Then, she's looking up, away from the two girls, away from everyone.

There, on the very back, waving shyly, she sees her ghost.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Half an hour later, the line's still as long as ever.

Genji hides.

He's noticed that One has been glancing around the room, as if looking for someone. The young man is not sure why he's suddenly feeling nervous again. One's probably looking for a friend. A fan, maybe? Boyfriend? That's happened before, right?

A part of him thinks that One's probably looking for him but that's just stupid. They've never met. Maybe she can tell he's hiding and is just keeping an eye out just in case he's dangerous. Genji wouldn't blame her for that last one. Being idols, they might already have one or two obsessive fans of their own.

Even so, he knows he can't stay hidden forever. Eventually, the crowd will get smaller and he won't be able to hide any longer.

Genji's suddenly twitching.

This was a bad idea.

Bad, bad.

What the hell was he going to do?

He just couldn't keep hiding. It was now or never. Hadn't he told himself he'll have that talk? Hadn't he told himself he wouldn't run away?

Sakura was dead and he just wanted answers.

Genji didn't know what he was running away from.

He already had run away from that talk with his father, running away again wouldn't matter much in the end.

But Genji couldn't get his feet moving. They were stuck. Stuck in place, stuck with this questions.

Genji took a deep breath and moved. He kept to the corner, watching as One and the others greeted and talked to their fans and took pictures and smiled. He watched One for a bit before turning away. Genji took out his phone and looked at the time. It was almost nine. The meet-and-greet was set to end at 9:30 and then, she'll be gone.

He didn't know what to do.

The line was getting smaller, the crowd was dispersing, fans were leaving.

He took a deep breath and took out a piece of paper and a pen. He looked back at One and at the line of people.

It was now or never.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Sakura didn't even wait as Kotaro informed the reminding crowd that the meet-and-greet was over before leaving her place, ignoring the worried stares that the rest of the girls were sending her. Junko met her backstage but Sakura just mumbled that she'll be back and was gone before the Showa idol could ask her more.

By the time the others were backstage, Sakura was nowhere to be found. It didn't take long to find her, however.

The girls and Kotaro found her outside, in the parking lot, sitting side by side with an unfamiliar young man with a cigarette in his mouth.

* * *

Sakura spots him outside, in the parking lot, sitting on a bench. He's alone, smoking a cigarette and looking to the side. He hasn't noticed her yet.

Sakura, for her part, stays in place and watches him.

He's so tall. If he had been just a bit taller, he would be almost the same height as the old man. His hair is the same shade of brown, neatly combed back like always. His eyes, blue like hers, stared into the darkness of the parking lot, the only light surrounding him being his lit cigarette and that streetlight hiding behind the bench.

Sakura made a face as she took notice of the cigarette and shook her head before walking towards the bench. She stopped, once, glancing behind her, wondering if any of the girls would try to stop her. Wondering if Kotaro was going to show up out of nowhere and pull her away. When no one did, she kept on walking.

The young man didn't acknowledge her as she took a seat next to him. They stayed there, sitting together quietly, as the young man took a quick breath, smoke surrounding him like a cloud on a rainy day. Sakura glanced his way and her frown deepened.

"Smoking's bad for you…"

He stares at her now, cigarette between his fingers, smoke scattering with the wind. They stare at each other for a bit before the young man turns to stare at the parking lot again. Sakura notices the slight twitch in his cheeks, the way the cigarette shakes as he holds it. Sakura's hands are shaking too, her breathing is a little too fast. She's nervous but she's already here.

"Heh…" the young man says in a voice she can no longer recognize. "You wouldn't be the first to tell me that…" He moves his shaking fingers towards his mouth and he breaths in and then out. More smoke.

"It really is bad for you…" she tells him, worry itching her throat.

"It's calming," he answers.

Sakura's seen Yugiri smoking a few times but the courtesan was born during a time where that wasn't such a bad thing. She had been smoking a lot the first few days after she woke up along with the others.

(had she been nervous, too?)

"What are you doing here?" he asks her, blue eyes staring at her own, cigarette hanging by shaky fingers.

Sakura stares at him once before she looks down, unsure of what to say but it only lasts a second. "...that was your note, wasn't it?" The young man looks away. After a while, Sakura asks, "Who did you think I was?"

"Who do you think I am?" he counters, smirking slightly despite the pleading look in his eyes. Sakura gives him a glare in return and his smile widens. "Who are you?"

Sakura's stare softens and she turns away. She stares at the empty parking lot. There's few cars and even fewer people on this side. The van is parked on the other side, close to the entrance of the convention center. There's more cars parked in the front. Kotaro figured they would be safe if something were to happen again.

Sakura sighs and stares back at the boy whose too tall for her now. "...Sherry."

"Ah…"

"And you're Genji...Kurosawa Genji."

The young man, Genji, suddenly nods, as if pleased by something despite his still shaking fingers and twitching cheeks. His blue eyes shine as if he wants to cry but instead he puts the cigarette back in his mouth and lets out a bit of smoke from his nostrils. He turns to stare at the parking lot.

"Sherry's dead, you know…been dead for a while now," he tells her, shaking his head. Sakura wants to cry, to hold him but she can't afford the makeup to wash out, not here, not in front of him. "And yet, here she is...so, the question is...what's she doing talking to me?"

"Genji…"

"No. I'm serious...I was the jerk and still she came here to talk." A small tear manages to escape him and he wipes it away but it's too late. Sakura's already seen it. "She's dead and she's talking to me." Sakura moves closer, a hand already moving to grab his shoulder...he's so young, she's younger and dead and he…

"...Genji...Iー"

"Hey! You little punk!"

Sakura jumps when she hears the familiar scream. Genji barely reacts, still smoking as he glances at Kotaro and the rest of Franchouchou. Kotaro has his arms crossed over his chest and the other girls are staring at Sakura, unsure of what to think. Yugiri seems to be the only one that truly sees what's going. She's staring at Genji with a stern look, trying to gauge him, trying to figure him out.

Genji stands up from the bench, throws his cigarette to the ground before he stomps it out. He and Sakura stand side by side as Kotaro approaches them. The man's trying to be intimidating but he's failing miserably.

Genji wasn't one to get scared so easily and Sakura knew it.

(but she hadn't seen him in years...who knows how he'll react now?)

"What's your game, eh!?" Kotaro cries, shaking his head at Sakura before turning to the young man. "Trying to spoil a sweet young girl with your seductive ways, eh!? EH!?" Sakura gives Kotaro an exasperated look while Genji just raises an eyebrow at him, confused for a minute before pointing a finger and turning to Sakura.

"Who the hell is he?"

"He's...he's myー"

"Hey! Hey!" Kotaro interrupts, getting closer. Behind him, the girls are still with Saki and Ai holding Tae back. The older woman is growling at the young man, probably being reminded of the guy that hurt Sakura a week back and figuring that new stranger was planning to hurt her again, too. "Talking to the idols is strictly forbidden!"

Sakura just gives him another exasperated look while Genji's face turns into a scowl. "I wasn't talking to you."

"So what, you idiot!? You can't talk to her! It's notー" Before anyone has a chance to react, Genji's fist meets Kotaro's face, surprising the man and sending him to the ground.

"Genji!"

But Genji isn't listening. He's grabbing Kotaro and pulling him up by the collar so they're face to face. Saki tries to help their manager but Sakura gets in her way, shaking her head. She turns to the young man and pleads, "Genji! Please! Please! Don't hurt him!"

"Hurt him!? I'm not going to hurt him! I'm gonna kill him! Big difference!"

The other girls immediately try to jump him but Sakura gets in their way, stopping them before they can get close with surprising strength.

"Egghead! What the fuck!?"

"What are you doing!? He's going to kill the idiot!" Ai cries, glaring. Junko and Lily, for their part, try to push Sakura back to no avail.

"He's not! Genji! Please, please! Let him go! Now!"

"Why should I!?"

"Because I'm asking you, please! Do this for me!"

Tae escapes Sakura's grip but she's held back by Yugiri. The woman growls at the courtesan to let go but she doesn't budge. Saki groans when she notices that Yugiri has taken Sakura's side on this weird situation. "Sis! Really!?"

"Yugirin! What are you doing!?"

But Yugiri doesn't budge, she just stares at Sakura and mouths, 'Stop him'.

"Genji!"

"Okay, you bastard!" Genji cries out, glaring, face to face with Kotaro. Kotaro doesn't even flinch. He seems to have realized the same thing that Yugiri has and is more than willing to accept his punishment. Sakura's suddenly by Genji's side, she's holding one of his arms back, trying to get him to stop.

"Genji, Genji! Please let go of him!"

"Not until he explains what's going on!"

Kotaro is silent for a bit, his cheeks already red and sore. He's sighing. He's figured it out. "I'm sorry."

"You better fucking be! What the hell did you do to my sister!?"

That stops the other girls cold, even the ravenous Tae is frozen. They all stare at Genji.

It takes them a bit to process what has just happened and even longer to realize what this all means. But they already know. They've been found out and there was no going back now.


	16. Another Bucketful of Rain

**16 / Another Bucketful of Rain**

Sakura pulled unto her brother's arm, trying, in vain, to get him away from Kotaro. Genji, taller, older, stronger, kept his hold firm on Kotaro's collar, barely feeling as his sister tried to push him back. That strength that Sakura had summoned to keep the girls at bay was failing her. Kotaro, held in place by Genji's rough grip, stared at the young man, face passive. There was no mocking voice, no screaming, no silly gestures. There was only cold acceptance of the beating that was to come.

The rest of Franchouchou watched the scene with strange fascination. Saki had tried to push Yugiri back once or twice but the courtesan had held firm. Ai, too, had tried to circle around the older woman but Junko, worried for her partner's safety, held her back. Tae kept on growling but she didn't move. Lily hid behind Junko, holding unto the older girl's shirt, flinching slightly at the red in Kotaro's cheek.

Genji was raising his arm again. He was glaring, he was angry and for what, he didn't know. He just knew that this guy was responsible and he was going to break his nose.

Sakura tried to pull him back again but the arm was already raising, it was up, it was about to fall any second now...so, in a moment of panic and worry, Sakura bit unto her little brother's arm. Hard.

Her brother let out a loud yelp, unable to comprehend what had just happened. While he was distracted, Sakura moved quickly, using her hands to untangle Genji's finger's from Kotaro's collar, forcing her brother to let go of the older man. Sakura moved back, a hand over her mouth.

Genji doesn't bother trying to grab Kotaro as he quickly massages his arm. That bite had hurt! The young man turned to stare at his sister, a bewildered look on his face. "Did...did you just bite me?" He flinches slightly at the stare Sakura gives him; her pretty blue eyes were suddenly lifeless and cold. Don't argue with me, the eyes seemed to tell him.

Sakura muttered an apology to Kotaro, who was just lying there, and pulled Genji away, as far away as she could from her friends and her crazy manager. She had glanced back once, expression firm, and then shook her head before turning her attention towards her younger brother, who was still rubbing his arm.

"What the heck was that!?" Sakura asked him, hands on her hips. "Why did you hit him?"

And Genji can't really respond. The moment that guy had showed up with his hysterics, Genji hadn't really thought things through. He just knew he was involved somehow and he deserved to be punched in his pretty little face.

"Well?"

Sakura's still there, waiting, eyes cold, frown on her face.

It's almost like Genji's talking to a ghost.

Sakura looks exactly the same; dark pink hair, blue eyes, same ribbon.

That polka-dot ribbon had always been her favorite. The old man had given it to her on her seventh birthday, back when their parents were still together. He had been three and Sakura, smiling brightly, had let him tug on that strange little thing that their mother had tied neatly to her hair. Sakura had worn it every day since.

She wore it to school, she wore it in the house…

...she wore it that day when the truck had cracked her head open, too.

"I...you…" Genji bit his lip but that didn't stop the few tears from falling. Sakura's expression softened. Her cold, dead stare was gone.

"Genji…"

"You're dead…" he says weakly, as he places a hand over his face, hiding his tears. "...you're dead." He shakes his head and he pulls his hand away from his face so his swollen red, blue eyes are staring at Sakura's own. "He...did he do this…? Is this why…?"

Sakura sighs. "He did...at least, that's what he says…" Genji dries his tears, sniffing. "Genji...look…I…" Sakura takes a deep breath. "...Tomorrow…" Her brother sniffs again, a few tears fall down his cheeks. Sakura smiles sadly. Genji wants to cry out but he doesn't dare. He doesn't want his weakness to show in front of those strangers (probably dead girls, too). "...tomorrow..as early as you can...uhm, here…" Sakura whispers a few words to him. It's an address. He's not familiar with the place but he nods.

"Okay, alright...I'll...see you, then..."

The young man wipes away his tears, nods to Sakura once more and then, turns away. He glances at Kotaro, who's still on the floor. He's sitting there, just staring. Genji glares at him one more time and disappears into the night.

* * *

No one talks as Kotaro drives them all home.

Everyone's shaken in certain ways.

Saki's grumbling in the back seat. Ai is frowning, staring at Sakura once or twice before shaking her head. Junko, nervous, leans against the younger idol and holds her arm for comfort. Lily, for her part, is quiet. She's been trying to sleep for a while now but can't. Tae is fast asleep, snoring, leaning against a quiet Sakura. Yugiri seats beside the two girls, eyes glancing at Sakura once or twice.

Sakura had not spoken a word ever since that young man, Genji, as she called him, left. When Saki and Ai had demanded an explanation, Sakura had just shrugged and in a tone that left no room for argument she had whispered, "I'll tell you later." Saki, of course, had been annoyed. Their leader had bothered her for ten minutes straight but Sakura had just repeated the same thing over and over again, "I'll tell you later" and that had been it. Ai was a bit more understanding. It's almost as if she had expected something like this to happen. It had already happened to Lily and to a lesser extent, Saki, and it was just a matter of time before it happened again. Yugiri figured, however, that Ai was more disappointed in the fact that Sakura had just revealed herself so carelessly.

The courtesan didn't really know what to think.

Things were certainly going to change after today.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

A few hours later, as they are getting ready for bed, Sakura disappears.

No one is really surprised.

Yugiri finds her a few minutes later sitting out in the balcony, looking at the stars. Romero sits by her feet, snoozing softly. It takes a bit but Sakura finally notices Yugiri and nods her head. "Hey, Yugiri…"

"Hello, Sakura...are you well?"

Sakura seems to think about her answer before nodding again. "A little, I guess...is Saki still upset?"

"Lady Saki has been upset for a quite a while now. I fear it might not end until you give her a definite answer." The other young woman just shakes her head.

"Not today…"

"I figured as much..."

Both zombies are quiet for a bit before Sakura turns Yugiri's way and smiles. "...I forgot to thank you...you know...for making sure that Tae didn't bite anyone…" Yugiri giggles, sending a mischievous look Sakura's way.

"It is too bad I could not stop you." Sakura blinks before laughing.

"Heh! I suppose that's fair…" the young woman suddenly sighs and turns away, staring at something in the distance. "Genji...Genji always had a bit of a temper...he was usually more composed but well...it's been a while…" It was obvious that Sakura wanted to say more but couldn't.

The last time Sakura Minamoto had seen her brother had been eleven years ago. He had changed, she had not. Sakura was still seventeen and dead and Genji, to Yugiri's eyes, was over twenty. There was more to the story of the two siblings, of course, but it was obvious that the Genji Sakura was familiar with and the Genji that had punched Kotaro Tatsumi in the face were different. And Sakura knew this.

Yugiri only hoped that whatever Sakura had planned to do, it did not go poorly.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Back in their shared bedroom, Saki, frustrated beyond belief grabs her pillow puts it over her face and groans loudly with annoyance. "I can't believe this fucking happened…" Tae is wandering nearby but watches, curious, as Saki lets out another groan, her voice muffled by the pillow over her face.

Sitting next to her, Ai frowns. She's been doing that alot for the past few hours. "This was bound to happen eventually…" she comments. Her answer causes Saki to groan even louder.

"AGH! THAT STUPID EGGHEAD!"

"From what I could gather...that guy doesn't know we are zombies…"

"But…" Junko began, shaking her head. "He obviously knows who Sakura is...and if that is true, then he must know she's dead...It's obvious he knows that something is going on...and that we are part of it."

Lily tilted her head, crossing her arms. "He called her his sister, didn't he? Sakura never mentioned she had an older brother…" Tae groaned in the distance.

"He's probably younger, given the time frame…" Ai sighed, passing a bandaged hand over her hair. "But...Sakura isn't talking…"

"Maybe Yugi might get her to talk!" Lily replied hopefully but Ai was already shaking her head.

"Fucking idiot…" Saki grumbled, pillow thrown to the side.

"W-well...didn't she say she'll tell us later?"

"It better be freakin' soon!" Saki said, glaring at the door. "What the hell is she trying to pull?" The others were quiet after that, even Tae, who had been so carefree moments ago, turned to stare at the others in silence.

Things had already changed and they didn't know what to do.

* * *

Sakura tried to be as quiet as possible as she changed clothes and applied the makeup. The pink haired zombie knew that the others were awake but that didn't stop her from taking it slow, making as little noise as possible as she moved about. It was just common courtesy, even if the others were awake. She was genuinely surprised that they didn't try to stop her.

Her futon had been made, her ribbon, had been left behind on the top of the pillow and in her hands a photograph. That photograph was one of the many copies that had not been sold in the last concert. It would do.

Sakura moved through the halls quickly before finally reaching the door. She quickly put on her shoes, glancing behind her once or twice, wondering if Kotaro would show up but he never came. Little Romero watched her, sitting nearby. The dog seemed to smile at her, letting out a few yelps as he wagged his tail. Sakura smiled, scratching his ears before standing up and going to the door. Romero followed after her but Sakura shook her head. "Sorry, Romero...I'm not going on my morning run today…" she told him. The little pup, understanding he was going be left behind, whined. "Oh, Romero...I'm sorry! I promise I'll take you next time but now…" Sakura kneeled before the little dog and tapped his head. "Stay...I'll be right back, okay…?" Romero let out another small whine as Sakura opened the door, walked out, and closed the door as gently behind her.

Kotaro Tatsumi appeared from the shadows, he removed his glasses and sighed.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Sakura found Genji waiting for her right outside, standing right in front of the gate.

He had his arms crossed over his chest, staring at the old mansion with a raised eyebrow, face mildly confused as if he couldn't believe it. He had examined the windows, the walls, the roof, everything. To his eyes, it might have looked like an old abandoned house, with the vines growing all over the place and it's weathered appearance.

(it might as well have been abandoned a long time ago but Sakura never asked so Kotaro had never answered)

When Genji saw her coming, he seemed to smile but he quickly hid it with a small frown. Sakura just waved his way with her free hand, clutching the photograph with the other as she closed the gate behind her. She approached him, glancing one more time at the old mansion, before nodding his way. They stood side by side for a bit before they started walking, to where, Sakura couldn't be too sure. Genji had absentmindedly mentioned that there was a cafe a few ways back, they could go there, they opened early.

They walked a bit more before Sakura stopped suddenly. Genji stopped with her. Both siblings were quiet for a while before Genji asked, "So…?"

"You want to know what's going on," Sakura said. Her brother just nodded as an answer. Sakura took a deep breath and showed him the photo she had crumpled on her hand. Genji recognized it almost immediately; it was one of the photos from that calendar, the photo for October. The photo had been a rather creepy addition to the calendar but back then it had just been that, a photo, but now as Genji examined it and looked at a Sakura, who was staring sadly back, he gulped slowly. "That's how I...how we...that's how we normally look without the makeup."

"Like corpses…"

Genji really can't believe it. He stares at his sister. Sakura is nodding, staring to the side, lifting up her shirt sleeve. Genji almost chokes on his spit. The skin above her arm was a putrid blue, exactly like in the photo, looking lifeless and dry. Then, she was raising her arm and Genji heard it...odd snapping and cracking sounds, as if her bones were twisting, moving in place, almost breaking. It was surreal.

Everything hit him at once, his eyes widened.

"You...you're a corpse…" he whispers and Sakura, lowering her arm, letting her sleeve cover her rotten skin, nods. Genji, involuntarily, takes a step back. Sakura doesn't notice it, she's staring to the side, clutching the photo firmly in her hand.

"I...I know this is a lot to take in...I…" Sakura lets out a shaky breath. The tears are about to fall, to ruin her makeup and then, her brother would know and he would run away screaming. "I...I understand if you...if you don't want…" And then, she stops, she feels arms around her and looks up.

Genji is holding her close, his blue eyes shining with tears. "I...I missed you, sis…"

Sakura can't help but let out a quiet sob as she hugs him back.


	17. Okoba and the Saga Mystery

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Early update!

**17 / Okoba and the Saga Mystery**

Okoba can't remember how he got home that night. The only thing he remembers is calling for a cab, opening his door and going to sleep. And in his dreams, he sees her, One and the rest of Franchouchou.

There's a knife on One's chest. There's no blood but she's smiling. Her rosy cheeks are as red as her hair, and when she looks at him she's smiling...and then, her skin begins to rot. A crack appears in the middle of her face as she asks Okoba if he's alright. Then, he sees Three. Her skin is burnt, her hair sparkling with electricity. There's Two, covered in flames, riding a motorbike, screaming and laughing as she crashes into the void. He can see Four. She's falling apart with every step she takes. Six's heart beats out of her chest comically every time a flatline hits. Zero and Five stand side by side. They notice him, impassive, skin slowly bloating, turning a putrid blue before they explode. Everything goes dark...then he hears the music and later, wakes up.

His heart is beating so hard it physically hurts, he has goosebumps.

The clock reads one o'clock in the morning but Okoba doesn't dare close his eyes again. He's afraid he'll see the dead parade once more.

A day later, in the office, his coworkers comment that he looks terrible. Okoba assures them that he just didn't sleep well.

(he wonders if he'll ever sleep again)

He tries to forget about Franchouchou and the dead, tries to forget what he saw in that parking lot.

There's talk in the office about some monster bear, and Okoba is glad for that distraction. Some are saying that it's a bear with a rare skin disease while others whisper that it probably belonged to some rich guy who let it go when he could no longer take care of it. A few murmur that the bear might be sick and that's why it's so violent. The authorities and animal control seemed to be going in circles but Okoba knows that animals find ways to disappear, and if that bear is smart, it probably is avoiding humans as it goes about its day. Still, the reports are numerous. Some are saying it's a sick bear, others are saying it's a monster bear.

These stories keep his mind off of Franchouchou but a week later, he dreams of the dead again.

He dreams of Sakura, Saki, Ai, Junko, Yugiri and Lily. In his dreams, in his nightmares, he sees Sakura. Her face is split in half, there's blood all over her school uniform and she's dragging her feet. One of her arms is twisted and broken. Ai is next. She's burnt to a crisp, lightning flashes in the distance and he can see her bones, illuminated under all that burnt flesh. Junko, there's only pieces that seemed to drop from the sky. Saki, like Two, is on fire. She wears a long jacket as she walks. Okoba hears the sounds of bikes starting. Lily's chest has a hole where the heart should be. Okoba finds it, beating, in his hand. He drops it in disgust. And then, he sees a skeleton. It's wearing a beautiful kimono, and it's long hair is tied into a bun in the shape of a heart. It grins at Okoba as it picks up the heart. Zero appears in the dream as well. She walks side by side with Sakura, trying to stitch the girl's head back together with skeletal hands. Then, for some reason, the bear's here too, it's screaming at his face, inching closer and closer and opening its jaw...taking a bite...and...

That's when Okoba wakes up. He's sweating, his heart beats a mile per second. He's afraid of going back to sleep, afraid of seeing the dead parade in his head again.

He can't sleep.

Okoba takes a cold shower, trying to get the images out of his head.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

The next day, Okoba is at his desk, there's a notebook in front of him and a pounding on his head. Sitting neatly in a row, are the pictures of the members of Franchouchou and below them, the pictures of the dead, well, except for Zero. That picture he puts aside.

There's a list on the notebook. He went back to the death metal blog and searched everything he could about Franchouchou or whatever they were called before all over again. It mentioned their first concert, the banging heads, the jumping girls. They acted so differently then, so uncontrolled, so...dangerous, even.

That concert was cut short for, as the blog quotes, "the girls got too into the metal, man".

The second performance was calmer and rather odd. It started with Two and One playing magic tricks with Zero's head. "It was an epic performance!" the blog reads. "They delivered such a cool rap battle...too bad they dropped that zombie schtick a few concerts later…"

Okoba reads the same words over and over again.

Zombie, zombie.

The word kept repeating over and over inside his head.

Zombie, zombie...breaking apart, the rumors of monsters in Karatsu, the strange girl that appeared that night almost two years back.

It makes sense…

The Franchouchou girls don't have the faces of the dead.

They are the dead.

But that's impossible.

Okoba knows for a fact that the dead can't come back to life. Zombies are thing of fiction.

And yet, as he stares at that photo from that calendar, he can't help but notice the accuracy of death; there's One with a scar in the middle of her head, Three covered in bandages like a mummy, Four looks stitched together, Six's heart is out of her chest a few sizes too big. There's a scar on Two's cheek, and he can see the bandages on her arms and legs. She's got less bandages than Three, but it's obvious what they hide. Five has a scar around her neck and Zero has bandages around her head, on her neck.

It's such a simple thing, this photo and yet, it makes Okoba's skin crawl.

He's connecting dots, noticing things he wouldn't have noticed before.

He recalls a particular incident in one of their singing events, when that tall, muscular man appeared. Okoba knew he had seen that man somewhere before but he couldn't really figure it out until he remembered what had happened. The man had touched Six and he had been sent flying into a stereo by Two.

Okoba recognized the man now. He rarely showed up in camera but Okoba now had a name.

It was Takeo Go, Lily Hoshikawa's father.

(had he noticed it, too?)

Okoba slams his head on the desk, crashing against ink and paper. He stays like that for what feels like hours before raising his head slowly. There's a red mark already forming on his forehead. He hit himself too hard.

Letting out a deep breath, Okoba stares at his notebook, noticing that the writing makes no sense anymore. He stays there, staring, pen in hand, unsure of what to do. Eventually, he raises the pen and makes x's all over the place. No, no, no.

He's already writing the word 'zombie' right in the middle.

He stops and stares at the word, a hand massaging his chin, eyes glancing at the pictures.

Those girls were...dead...they were dead, and they were zombies. Zombies, zombies, zombies.

(it felt like a dream)

And it could explain so much, really.

But, who had been responsible for all of this? Was it that manager of theirs? Had he played God and brought the dead back to life on a whim? Had it been the girls themselves, too happy with life that they came back from the dead?

If this thing was true, if this crazy idea was true then...why?

Why would the biker Nikaido, courtesan Yugiri, actress Hoshikawa, dead Minamoto and even the unknown Zero, all want to become idols? Konno and Mizuno made sense. They had loved their work, had loved to be part of the spotlight...but these others…? It simply didn't make sense.

What was the angle here? What was Okoba missing?

Why zombies? Why idols?

(why the dead?)

Something was obviously going on but what, Okoba wasn't sure.

There was only two things that worried him about all of this; one, if their families knew and two, if they, the zombies, had some ulterior motive for coming back to life.

Okoba knew he couldn't discuss his findings with those girls. It would be foolish, perhaps even dangerous, to inform the group that he knew their secret...or at least, a part of it. He figured he couldn't tell the man either. More safety concerns, more worries.

Maybe he should try those girls' families. Maybe, when all was set and done, they could send him to the crazy house.

At least, looking for those girls relatives will keep his mind off the dark thoughts that were already forming...the thoughts of a zombie invasion slowly consuming Saga and later, Japan and the rest of the world.


	18. Chapter 18

**18 / Who Let the Zombies Out**

Kotaro grumbled as he went back to his office; the van's keys were back at his desk.

He couldn't believe he had forgotten about the brother.

Sakura, when she was still alive, had told Inui about the young man once or twice, maybe more. Back then, stupid little Inui had been too charmed by his crush to actually listen. Inui should have listened and now, because he hadn't, Kotaro was reaping what he sowed.

In all fairness, Kotaro had not really been thinking clearly when he decided to bring Sakura and those other girls back from the dead to save Saga as idols. Sure, he had wanted to make Sakura's dreams come true and while he was at it, save Saga from the slow, agonizing death spiral it seemed to be heading towards. It was a simple plan. A genius plan. Revive Sakura and team and then revelitize the Saga Prefecture. Simple. Kotaro would use his charm, his makeup skills, his genius to turn these girls into idols that would be loved not just by Saga but Japan as a whole and in turn, Saga would be saved! Simple plan, just plain simple...on paper.

Kotaro had not really thought far beyond "help Sakura and save Saga".

He hadn't been worried when the rest of the girls, Saki, Ai, Junko, Lily and Yugiri had woken up and had wanted nothing to do with it...at first. Sakura had protested too, of course, but she had gone along with it if only because she wanted her memories back.

The girls had a second chance at life, and that was all that mattered, really.

So what if Lily's old man had shown up!? So what if Saki had met up with her old boss!? So what!? Dead was dead! That was that!

But recent events gave him pause.

Ai and Junko's despair had made him pause.

Lily's father had made him pause...Saki's old friend had made him pause...Sakura's memories had almost broke his heart.

He had been thinking so much about everything else that he had forgotten to think about the girls. To him, Sakura had mattered the most. She was the important one. But then, from the shadows, he had seen the others, Junko and Ai stuck in their despair, Lily in her youth, Yugiri in her past, Saki in her violence, Tae in her legend. He had tried to inspire them, tried to make them want to give their new lives a shot. They were his responsibility now. He had done this to them, and now, he had to take care of them...as best as he could, as best as his wallet could afford.

True, he wasn't the best caretaker but the girls were smart. They had each other now.

He knew he had to keep his distance, to only interfere when the others girls couldn't.

The master had told him that the girls were still dead. For as much as they were living now, they were still dead.

"Eventually, the years will catch up...perhaps their bodies will fail them, perhaps they'll get destroyed...but they'll die again. Eventually. Time is infinite and it moves without mercy. They'll know when it's their time. That's the charm about the dead...they know when it's time for them to rest for eternity."

That man the master had told him about had probably figured that out, too.

Dead was dead, hadn't he told himself that a thousand times over?

Dead was dead.

They were dead.

And he had completely forgotten about Sakura's little brother.

At first, he hadn't been too worried. Dead was dead, after all. Takeo Go and Reiko Kirishima had figured this out, too. Two and Six were different people, after all. Dead was dead.

But Sakura's brother had obviously done something more than just put two and two together. Dead was dead, after all, so how had that kid figured out otherwise? What had changed? What had Kotaro not noticed?

Kotaro had been keeping up with all the blogs and news about Franchouchou. He knew about that death metal blog, knew about a few stories here and there. But those were just stories, rumors, nonsense. No one could connect them and say, "Ah! I see now!", at least, that's what Kotaro figured.

If anyone had recognized the more famous members of Franchouchou they'll probably chalk it up to a very distant family member or just an identical stranger. That was the logical thing to do.

Whatever.

It didn't really matter how Sakura's brother had found them out. He just knew that Sakura's lapse of judgement yesterday had answered it all. Kotaro figured that Sakura would tell her brother the truth and then, who knows what would happen then.

Kotaro can't even get mad about it.

He knows he should have been careful, should have dealt with this problem before it got out of hand but…

...Sakura wasn't like Lily. Like Saki.

Sakura had just remembered her family a few months back. It was obvious why she reacted so harshly and just up and revealed herself to her little brother. Something had happened, something had changed.

Kotaro knew it was his fault; Sakura was the living dead because of him, because of his dream, because of his desperation.

He opened the office door, found the keys and with a sigh, turned and began walking again.

With any luck, they wouldn't have gotten far andー

"Hey! Shades!"

Kotaro stopped, turned and stared as the rest of Franchouchou walked up to him. They were dressed in their uniforms, Tae with her robes, Yugiri with her kimono. They all wore makeup, and were moving quickly towards him.

"Give us a ride, why don't ya?" Saki went on, nodding his way. She obviously knew what he was planning.

Well, damn, he figured.

The more the merrier…

* * *

The cafe Genji had mentioned was just opening when the siblings arrived. There were a few folks already in tables, examining menus and talking animatedly with each other. Sakura and Genji made sure to sit as far away as possible.

"You holding up okay?" Genji asked his sister as they sat down. Sakura, sniffing slightly, nodded with a smile.

"Ah...yes...I think I'll be fine...so long as I don't cry anymore…" Genji nodded.

He knew his eyes were a little red too. He couldn't really remember how long they had just stood there in the street, holding each other and crying. Sakura's makeup had been ruined by the tears, revealing a bit more of her rotten skin but Genji had not cared. They had passed by a convenience store on the way to the cafe and realizing there could be trouble if people noticed that blue skin, Genji had bought his sister some cheap cosmetics so she could fix her makeup. Once Sakura decided she looked decentーhumanーthey made their way to the cafe and now, they were here.

A waitress finally noticed them, walked their way and asked what they would like to order. Genji ordered some cold coffee and asked Sakura if she'll like something. Of course, his sister had protested but Genji told her to order something. It was his treat. The pink haired girl, looking a bit anxious, scanned the menu before shyly asking for a milkshake. Strawberry flavored, please.

With the waitress gone, the siblings were alone once again.

Both of them were silent for a while, waiting for their beverages. They avoided staring at each other but it wasn't long before Sakura asked, "So...h-how is everything…?" Genji gives her a small smile.

"We moved to Florida," he tells her, as if that answers everything. Sakura giggles all of the sudden.

"Florida, eh?"

"Florida."

"And? How...how is everyone? How are you?"

"Everyone's fine. Mom and Ben married...the old man's busy at Tokyo." Sakura nodded. Genji went on. "I work freelance...sound design..." Sakura raised an eyebrow at him.

"You're a sound designer?" Her brother shrugged.

"Eh...I like to make sounds, I guess...started a year after I moved out from the old man's...eh, you know."

"Ah," Sakura nods, and then, smiles again. "Do you like it?"

"...it's alright." It was more than alright. Sakura knew that that meant that Genji absolutely adored his job.

Genji was like that. He expressed himself so little sometimes, but growing up, Sakura had learned that something just being 'alright' to him was enough. As a child, he would have smiled more, talked more, laughed more but as he got older and their parents separated, he had become quieter, angrier, rarely talking unless spoken to. Sakura had only been familiar with those two sides of him, the child that laughed and loved and the teenager that had, at one time, hated her and their father. But now, he was older, he had changed. He wasn't loud, he wasn't anxious. He was less angry, less upset. He seemed to be an in-between of the child and the teenager.

(Genji looked so much like their father...it hurt)

"And...what about Dad…? Is he…?"

Genji shrugged. "Eh...he's fine. I think. Haven't really talked to him in a while. Mom talks to him once in a while...so, he's fine." The waitress returned, leaving behind a cold coffee for Genji and a milkshake for Sakura. The young woman asked if they needed anything else but Genji shook his head, and bowing, the waitress left them alone once again.

Genji took a sip of his drink and Sakura just stared at her milkshake. There was straw on it's side, left behind by the waitress.

"Are you still mad at him…?" Sakura asked him silently. Genji grunted.

"...Not anymore…"

"But you're not talking to him…"

Genji grunted again, glancing Sakura's way as he took a sip of his coffee. "I guess I didn't see a reason to talk to him...not after that…" Sakura looked down at her lap, suddenly ashamed she had brought her death back to the fold. Not like they could avoid it. She was dead. That was a given. "Hey...sis, eh...it's fine. I get it, really." He chuckled, making Sakura glance at him. "Mom told me to have a chat with him some time back...have a chat with your father, she said."

"And did you?" she pressed. Genji rolled his eyes, suddenly exasperated.

"No."

Sakura gave him a disapproving look. "Genji…"

"What?"

Sakura sighed.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

A few tables away, a trio of gentlemen, young, well-dressed, sat in a circle. One of them, a redhead, had taken a chair from one of the other tables, sitting backwards on it and grabbing one of the menus that had been left behind on the top of the table. The redhead let out a few murmurs as he scanned the menu, glaring a bit as he struggled on what to order.

His two companions, one with messy brown hair and the other, black hair and glasses, stared at him with a certain degree of amusement. The waitress had already taken their orders while their friend had been busy grabbing his chair, she had even passed by a few minutes ago but still, redhead was busy staring at the menu, unable to decide.

Glasses shook his head at the redhead before turning towards the other young man. "So...what's the word? Old man still fuming out of his mouth?"

The young man examined his tie. It was a coal black. Presentable, honest. He shrugged. "He's been hearing those rumors again...about you know what. Told him it was just that. Rumors."

"I'm surprised he's making this much noise about some rumors...it's been years," the redhead commented, eyes still glued to the menu. Glasses frowned next to him.

"He has to get tired eventually…"

The young man, still examining his tie, shook his head. He looked up, brown eyes staring into the distance. "It's been more than twenty years...of course he's not going to let it go." He looked around the cafe as the redhead asked Glasses what he had ordered and if it was any good. The young man ignored the two men and kept on looking.

The cafe wasn't full this early in the morning. Most of the folks around here were heading to work, a few others, out of habit, came for coffee and some breakfast. But it was a table a bit far away that caught his attention. They were seated facing each other, one of them had what seemed to be coffee and the other, a milkshake. Probably vanilla or strawberry by the color. They were a young man and a young woman. It was the young woman that caught his attention the most. She had the prettiest face, and the most magnificent dark pink hair he had seen. She wore a shirt and a skirt with frills, and despite looking rather informal, it did nothing to disturb her good looks. He almost swore she looked familiar but he squashed that thought. He would have known if she looked familiar.

(there was something missing)

"Would you look at that…" he whispered. The other two glanced at him, then, they stared at what he was looking at. The redhead grinned with amusement while Glasses groaned.

"Really?" Glasses asked, as if exasperated by his friend's discovery. "Really?"

"What?"

"She is cute," the redhead commented, putting the menu down. "Not my type but definitely a sight." He clicked his tongue. "Hmm...she seems familiar…"

The young man was already getting up, fixing his tie and passing a hand through his messy hair to tame it. His hair remained a little messy but it seemed alright. Glasses just fixed him a look. "Really?" he repeated, as if he couldn't believe this was actually happening.

"What? Can't a man take an interest in a young woman and ask her out?"

"Your old man might complain," the redhead but in.

The young man shrugged. "He's always complaining...besides, we don't know if she'll say 'yes'."

"...really?" Glasses went on, sighing. The young man nodded, grinning.

"Yes...really...andーoh. It seems another friend of theirs has joined the table."

Turning their attention away from their friend, the redhead and Glasses noticed a third person, a young man, wearing a sweatshirt and jeans, slam himself unto the table, spooking the young lady and making the young man turned to stare at him as if he was crazy.

"Quite the crowd, there," the redhead muttered as he and Glasses stood up. The young man left some cash behind and started walking, Glasses and the redhead following after him.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Yugiri let out a small hum as she and others watched from within the van.

Their manager had parked the van in the small parking lot a street away from the cafe. They kept themselves hidden by other cars but they could all see Sakura and her brother in the distance. It helped that they were not looking around, too.

The girls and Kotaro had found Sakura and that young man almost immediately. Lily had spotted them first, sitting in the farthest table possible of a recently opened cafe. They had passed by the cafe a few times when going to concerts and meet-and-greets. This was the first time that Yugiri truly saw it.

The place was rather small; it had very little room inside the cafe itself, maybe give or take two tables and four chairs. There was a counter and perhaps a kitchen and that glass box with many cakes and dishes inside. Most of the cafe's clients were seated outside while waitresses came and went, taking order after order.

A few minutes ago, the girls had watched a waitress take Sakura's and her brother's orders, coming back later with beverages in hand and then leaving to help their next patron.

The rest of Franchouchou was huddled together by the window, Ai and Junko peeking from behind Lily and Saki, while Tae and Yugiri, taller than most, huddled behind the two idols. Kotaro was at the wheel, grumbling, glancing once or twice at the cafe's direction, but keeping his eyes to the front.

Yugiri glanced at him a few times.

She couldn't rightly tell if he was annoyed or worried. There was a small hint of something Yugiri couldn't recognize but she felt that it related to that young man sitting with Sakura.

The courtesan stared at the two siblings, sitting facing each other.

Sakura seemed shy when she talked and her brother was a little too serious, a great contrast to his attitude from a day ago. The young man smiled very little, and when Sakura talked to him, he seemed almost nervous on how to answer.

Kotaro let out a small grumble, turning away from the window. Saki turned to give him a look, rolled her eyes, before she glanced at Ai and Junko peeking over her shoulder. Ai had a small glare in her face.

Their leader eyed the girl with a worried glance. "What with that look, girl? Sensing trouble?" Ai shook her head.

"That's not it…" Ai sighed. "I'm just a little…worried, that's all...If someone recognizes Sakura...there could be trouble."

"Trouble?"

Yugiri was not exactly sure what she meant. Trouble could take many forms, and one of those had reared its ugly head some time back. Was this the kind of trouble she meant? Or was it a more modern sort of trouble that Ai spoke up?

"They...well, people might think that Sakura's...on a date."

Yugiri blinked.

"And that's bad because…?" Saki asked, sounding just as confused as Yugiri felt.

"Idols dating is usually frowned upon," Ai explained. "If the wrong person spots them and sees Sakura it would be all over the tabloids...And I know. They're definitely not on a date for obvious reasons but well...it could reflect badly on Franchouchou." Junko nodded sadly.

Saki scoffed. "Feh…! It's not like you two lovebirds are any different."

Ai shrugged despite feeling a bit of warmth in her cheeks as Junko held her hand gently. "Well...we can keep it to ourselves…" Junko nodded again, blushing and smiling shyly. Saki and Lily gave them knowing looks while Yugiri smiled.

No one had made a big deal when the two idols had told the group that they were interested in each other and were officially together. Saki had just raised her hands up in the air and cried out a "Finally!" while Lily, Sakura and Yugiri congratulated them and wished them good luck on their relationship. Tae had just groaned, latched onto Junko's head with a happy smile. Poor Junko had been taken by surprise but at least she understood that Tae, despite not understanding, meant well and was just happy for her two friends.

"It can't all be that bad…"

Ai shook her head again and was about to respond before Kotaro, suddenly angry and firm, but in and said, "That's how things are now, stupid! No dates! No boyfriends! Now, shut up!" Saki glared at him.

"We're inside the van," Lily deadpanned. "They can't hear us from hear."

"So!?" the man responded causing the little girl to shake her head while Saki, under her breath, remarked that he was an idiot. Yugiri shook her head.

(there was definitely something wrong)

"Oh!" Junko suddenly jumped, making the rest of the girls turn to stare at her. The Showa Idol pointed a shaking finger towards the distance. Everyone looked at where the young woman was pointing, it was Sakura's table, and saw, to their surprise, a stranger making his way towards it and slamming himself unto the table as if nothing mattered in the world.

"What the…?"

Yugiri pursed her lips.

Where had that young man come from?

"Okay...who is that?" Ai wondered, frowning.

"Ya thinkin' he's trouble?" Saki asked, making everyone (minus Tae) worry a bit. The girls were too far away, and the new stranger was facing away, head buried under his arms. Sakura and her brother just stared at him, one spooked and the other annoyed.

Yugiri moved her sight away slightly and then noticed them. They were three young men making their way towards Sakura's table. One was busy fixing his hair and tie, while the other two, a redhead and a young man with jet black hair and glasses, walked behind him. The courtesan frowned, glancing a bit at the young man and then at Sakura's table, the stranger was raising his head up as if finally taking notice of the siblings.

Yugiri turned towards the trio of strangers. Sakura and her brother hadn't seen them yet. They were both busy staring at the stranger that had crashed on their table.

The courtesan felt something inside of her, an odd feeling mixed with worry and concern. She had never felt such a thing before and it made her rather upset. But staring at the young man that was obviously staring at Sakura with that familiar, almost lustful look, upset Yugiri for some reason.

She was still struggling with the feeling when Saki cried out, "What the heck!? There's more!" It seems she and the others had just noticed the new trio of young men making their way towards Sakura's table. They were almost there when the stranger that had crashed into the table suddenly stood up and…

...accidentally headbutted the guy with messy brown hair with the back of his head.


	19. Headbutt Rock

**19 / Headbutt Rock**

Sakura glanced at her milkshake, untouched, before shaking her head sadly, watching her brother from the corner of her eye. "...you are still mad, aren't you?"

Her brother didn't say anything. He picked up his coffee, took a sip, resting the cup a bit long on his lips before putting it down again. He seemed to be thinking about his answer. "Sakura...look...I…"

"No, no," Sakura interrupted, reaching for her beverage but stopping, hand falling gently on the table. "I...I get it. I get it. I sometimes," she sighed, "I sometimes would get upset at Dad, too...he was all day stuck in the office...I just kept waiting for him to come back...you were with mom most of the time, too...so…" Sakura stared at the table. Her milkshake seemed inviting but she just ignored it. "It was a problem…" Genji scoffed with a glare.

"A 'problem', is putting it lightly." Sakura smiled, shrugging.

"I guess, but...no. I guess it's not important anymore."

Genji hummed, his glare disappeared. He stared at his sister, silent before taking a deep breath and saying, "Mom told me why...though…" Sakura turned to stare at him, confused.

"Huh?"

"Why you stayed behind...with the old man, I mean…" Sakura stared at her younger brother before turning to her lap again, pulling her finger gently, feeling the bones of her dead body, hearing those little odd noises they made. She stopped, she sighed.

"I...well...I…"

(what did it matter, she was dead, she was dead)

"Sakura, listen...Iー"

**SLAM!**

Sakura let out a tiny squeak, almost jumping out of her chair and knocking over her drink while Genji, strangely calm but confused, held unto his cup of half finished cold coffee, staring at the newcomer with a raised eyebrow. The guy had grabbed a chair from another table, dragged it towards them and had sat down without a care in the world. He might have actually noticed the two siblings had he actually been paying attention.

The stranger was young, probably a few years older than Sakura, well, older than seventeen, anyway. He was wearing a sweatshirt and jeans, and sandals. The guy's head was on the table, his arms and hands over it like some sort of barrier, a bit of his brown hair sticking out in some places. He let out a small, tired groan. "This is sooo baaad...screw that guy, really…" he murmured, shaking his head underneath his little makeshift barrier. He kept mumbling to himself, unaware of the two people staring at him.

Sakura and Genji blinked, they stared at each other for a bit. Eventually, the pink haired girl leaned a little towards the young stranger, and asked, gently, "Are...are you okay?"

As if a switch had been flipped, the head began to rise, the arms falling to the side, on the table, revealing the messy hair of brown hair and eyes that were bloodshot from lack of sleep. The stranger finally took notice of the two people seated nearby and blinked.

"Huh? Whe-where…? What…?" he began to ask, eyes squinting trying to get a better look at Sakura and then at Genji. "Where did you people come from?"

Genji sighed, shared a look with his sister and cleared his throat. He leaned against the chair and said, "From the netherworld." Despite everything, Sakura couldn't help but roll her eyes and shake her head. The stranger just stared at her brother like he was crazy. "We made reservations for this table eons ago," Genji went on, tapping the table for emphasis.

"Wha-what?"

"We were here first, wise guy," Genji explained. The stranger blinked then, turned to stare at Sakura, blinking a bit more. Sakura smiled.

"Oh...oooh..boy," the stranger said after a while, finally realizing his mistake. He shook his head. "So-sorry about that...I haven't been sleeping well the past few days because of school and now...well, sorry, really."

"Hey, it's alright!" Sakura told him, still smiling. "It was just an honest mistake! It happens!" Genji finished his cold coffee as the stranger shook his head, looking a bit guilty.

"No, no...it's alright. I'll just be out of your way…" And just as quickly as he had slammed himself into the table, the stranger was quickly getting up, still apologizing, not looking back, not noticing as the other young man behind him until it was too late and…

"OWW!"

Sakura let out a loud gasp. Genji started, wide-eyed. The stranger let out a groan, rubbing the back of his head before turning.

He was met with a pair of young men, eyes wide, one with red hair and the other with black, wearing glasses. They both were staring at their third friend, who had a hand over his chin and mouth. This young man glared at the stranger, eyebrow twitching with anger. Nearby, the patrons just stared, blinking. One of the waitresses just stood there, notepad in hand, staring.

The group was quiet for a while before the brown haired young man took a deep breath and asked the stranger, voice shaking, "...who...who do you think you are…?" He removed his hand from over his chin and mouth and stared at the stranger straight in the eye. He seemed furious. "Who...don't you know who I am…?"

"N-no…" the stranger squeaked, realizing the sudden danger he was in. Behind him, Sakura stared worriedly, glancing at her brother, who was just taking out his wallet and leaving some yen behind. He turned to stare at his sister, putting his wallet back in his pocket and gesturing to the side. They needed to leave. This wasn't their business. But Sakura just turned towards the stranger and the man with messy brown hair.

The pink haired girl got up from her seat, standing next to the stranger. "Ah! Ah! Wait! Wait!" she started, getting the attention from the stranger, who stared at her in surprise, and the trio who finally took notice that she was there. Genji facepalmed, groaning silently with annoyance in his seat. He was ignored. "I-I'm sure he didn't mean to hit you! It was an accident!" The young man blinked at her then smiled. It was a sweet smile, almost innocent despite the predatory gaze he wore.

"Relax, sweetheart," he began, getting a glare from Genji. Messy hair was staring at the stranger, before quickly grabbing the collar of his sweatshirt and pulling him closer. The stranger flinched as he was pulled. "We are just going to have a talk...please, excuseー"

"Uh…! Uh…" Sakura began before an idea struck her and she pretended to spot something in the distance. "Oh! OH! Police! Officer! Help!" The trio, suddenly spooked, turned to look behind them where the policeman obviously was not. Genji stared at his sister in shock, unable to stop her from grabbing her milkshake and flinging the contents on messy hair's suit. The young man cried out in surprise, letting go of the stranger's collar. That was enough. Sakura grabbed the stranger's hand, pulling him, arguing him to follow after her. Genji swore, got up, and quickly followed after his fleeing sister and the stranger.

The trio stood there, finally realized they had been had, before messy hair let out a small groan of exasperation, shook his head and cried out, "What are you two standing around for?! After them!"

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

"Egghead! What the fuck!?"

Yugiri, along with the rest of Franchouchou, couldn't help but let out shocked gasps at the stunt that Sakura had just pulled. The others were already talking over each other, even Tae, but Yugiri just watched the pink haired zombie grab the stranger's hand and run for it, followed closely behind by her brother.

The courtesan could hear the grumblings of their manager from the front seat. They heard the car turning on, and Kotaro turned to face them and said, "Sit down. We're going after them."

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

"What the hell was that!?" Genji yelled as he followed after his sister.

Sakura had let go of the stranger's hand a while back now, all three running as fast as they could, Sakura in the lead, her younger brother behind her and the stranger barely keeping up with him on the back. They had been avoiding people and signs as they ran around the neighborhood, trying to avoid the chasing trio of suits behind them.

"It's not like I don't appreciate the help," the stranger huffed, trying to keep up with the siblings. "But...but what are we gonna do now!?" He glanced behind him. The trio of suits were still there, following after them. Messy hair was in the front, frowning as he ran, almost determined to catch them, while the redhead and Glasses ran behind him, screaming and yelling as they dodged pedestrians.

"This was so dumb! You know that, right!?" Genji cried out but Sakura wasn't listening. "What a mess...what a mess…" he mumbled, shaking his head.

"Eep!" Both siblings immediately turned to look behind them and stopped. The stranger, trying to keep up, tripped and fell, hard, on the ground. Behind them all, the trio of suits were gaining distance.

Sakura and Genji didn't waste any time and rushed towards the young man. Genji grabbed unto the young man's sweatshirt, pulling hard, lifting him up, and before the stranger could recover his footing, Sakura was grabbing his legs also lifting him up. The two siblings than started running again, carrying the stranger like a log, Genji holding his clothes and Sakura his legs. The stranger couldn't help but cry in surprise, "WHAT!? WHAT!?"

"This is your fault, by the way!" Genji yelled at the stranger, huffing. "Maybe next time you should watch out who's head you crash into!"

"It wasn't my fault!" the stranger cried back, mildly irritated. "I didn't see the guy!"

"Guys!" That was Sakura, sounding exasperated and tired. "Please! Not now!"

"This is also your fault, you know!?"

The siblings, still carrying the stranger, moved quickly, making turns and dodging people, all the while the stranger moaned and complained to be put down. Behind them, the trio of suits were still following, crying out tiredly at them to stop. Eventually, the siblings happened upon a small mall. They found a hiding place behind some bushes, and ducked. The stranger lay on Genji's and Sakura's laps, unmoving, all waiting for the trio of suits to pass them by. Other people just stared at them in confusion before moving away. Genji crossed his arms, frowning at the stranger's sweaty face. The stranger stared back, a little nervous. Sakura had a hand over her chest, breathing fast but silently. They could hear the shouting in the distance. It seemed so far away. They waited for a few more minutes and finally, nothing. The trio of suits seemed to have gone some other way, still trying to find them.

Genji unceremoniously pushed the young man off of his lap, the stranger rolling away without much protest. He let out a small "Ouch" to indicate he was fine in the floor. "You…" Genji began, pointing an accusing finger at his older sister. "This is the last time I take you out to eat…" Sakura turned to stare at her younger brother, and then, despite everything that had happened today, the girl began to laugh.

* * *

The trio let out a loud sigh.

They had lost sight of the girl and those two guys as soon as they got lost inside the mall. Now, messy hair was sweaty and his suit was dirty. He sighed. So much for wanting to invite a pretty girl to lunch.

"What...ah...what a mess…" Glasses murmured behind him, shaking his head. "Those guys were too fast…"

"The girl was faster, though," the redhead pointed out unhelpfully. Glasses glared at him while messy hair just grinned.

"That she was...that she was. Pretty and fast, what a combination." Glasses groaned.

"Come on, Oki! Not again! She literally threw her drink at you!"

Oki just smiled. "Well...I happen to like the flavor. Strawberry, I'm guessing." Glasses groaned again while the redhead shook his head with an amused smile.

"This won't end well if your old man finds out," Glasses warned but Oki was already walking away.

"So? A pretty girl and her friends managed to outrun us...it happens. Not a big deal. Besides, that old fool is still busy hunting the ghost of Dorami...he won't care about something so insignificant as this. Come on, let's get out of her. The less people that see me with this dirty suit, the better."


	20. Fantastic Lovers, the Remix Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay!

**20 / Fantastic Lovers, the Remix Part I**

Ryu "Renoir" Suzuhara was not having a good day.

A week ago, things seemed to be going great. His online classes were alright, his delivery job was okay and the old band was getting back together again and they needed a drummer and Renoir was all over it. Five days ago, everything was going so well. Then, came the weekend and that's when the bad news began.

First, due to department disputes, the online classes had been put on hold indefinitely. Next, he had lost his job because the shop where he was employed in was going through some family issues and had to close. Finally, the old band, those snakes, left him in the dust and got themselves some nobody drummer from Saga City, who just happened to be the boyfriend of the singer.

In just a couple of days, he had gotten annoyed at school, lost his job and had been stabbed in the back by a bunch of wannabe rock stars.

There had been a bright side to all of this, though.

The school thing was getting resolved by the end of the month and Renoir was already looking into new temporary jobs to hold him through until he found something more permanent. And maybe, while he was at it, he might as well find better friends.

A new day found him heading towards a small cafe, half asleep, still worried about school and work and still cursing that stupid Saga City drummer.

The cafe in question was one he had found while out job hunting. It was a small cafe, hidden between other businesses and houses with the beach not too far away. There was also that mansion by the end of the road, the one that looked abandoned. Rumor had it that it had been abandoned by its original owner after he or she had been cursed, or something along those lines. Others said that the mansion housed monsters, who lurked at night and ate the naughty children that were out after curfew.

Renoir had not believe the rumors, of course. Back in Shibuya, Renoir had heard his fair share of stories and rumors about monsters and ghosts.

That old mansion was probably a hot pot for them because no one dared to walk inside and find out what was really going on inside. Frankly, Renoir thought the whole place might collapse one day.

Ignoring everyone, including a waitress, Renoir, still half asleep, walked straight to the first table that had caught his attention, sat and tried to think of nicer things while he waited for a waitress to come and take his order. He was still muttering curses when a voice whispered, "Are you okay?" Imagine his surprise when he saw a pretty girl and a bored-looking fellow staring at him in confusion, asking him what he was doing at their table. Embarrassed, Renoir tried to leave only for the real trouble to being because he was still half asleep and not looking where he was going or who he was going to knock over. He ended up hitting some gangster type with the back of his head and, had the pretty girl and her companion not been there, Renoir would have been stuck home nursing a few broken bones by the end of the day.

Once they had outran the troublemakers, Renoir decided to go back home. He thanked the pair and made his way quickly back home. He was tired of running and he just wanted to sleep the stress off in his apartment.

Now, if he could only just figure out where he had seen that pretty girl before...

* * *

After getting a good night's sleep, Okoba decides he was being a little paranoid. Finding out that the dead were out there singing and dancing should have clued him in that those girls were probably not dangerous. Still, a part of him was dreading the future, replaying those old school zombie flicks he had watched when he was a teenager, telling him that the zombies were coming and that they were going to eat his brain...and...and...

Okay, so maybe he was being paranoid again.

(but what if he wasn't wrong about his worries?)

Sometime later, in the office, Okoba tries to work on this new project of his as discreetly as possible. He's in luck. No one is paying attention to him as they are all busy talking about some new internet sensation that arose over night back in Okinawa. Talk around the office mentioned some girl going by the internet moniker of Nikko, who had been doing covers of popular songs on the web for quite some time now but until recently had been a minor celebrity in her native Naha. Nikko had, according to the gossip passing from desk to desk, managed to attract the attention of a popular internet celebrity who in turn introduced millions to the signing voice of Nikko. Give or take a year or two, and everyone was sure that Nikko would be out there making her own mark in the world but for now, she was just a girl with a beautiful voice stuck behind a screen. At least the talk about Nikko drowned out the news about the bear, who seemed to have disappeared into thin air.

Okoba ignores the internet idol and the disappearing bear and instead focuses on the dead, making absolutely sure that his assistant or any of his coworkers don't catch wind of his work.

He needed to reevaluate the information before him.

The reporter already knew that Franchouchou was composed of dead girls, fact one. Dead girls from different eras, early 2000s, 90s, 80s and 1880s. All dead, all brought back to life to one purpose...uh, maybe. Had they been brought back to be idols? To take over the world? Eat...people…?

Okoba shook his head irritably.

His nerves were doing the thinking again.

He began to write down the facts using simple words, leaving out the words "dead" and "zombie" in case someone would want to look over his shoulder and see his work. He used the nicknames of the girls and put the dates next to their numbers, 08 for One, 97 for Two, 08 for Three, 83, Five, uh, 182, and finally, 11 for Six. Zero, or whoever she was, didn't have a date nor did Okoba know her real name, so that girl she just gave a big zero next to her name adding a big question mark right after.

Okoba had all the pieces of the puzzle, he just needed to find their right place.

But even as he worked, the same thoughts began to cloud his mind.

(what if these girls were dangerous? what if this…? what if that…?)

Okoba shook his head once more, ripped the paper from the notebook, crumpled it up and threw it in the trash.

He wasn't going anywhere with this whole thing. His discovery of Franchouchou's real nature had just made the questions more complicated and morbid. He knew he couldn't up and go straight to the girls and reveal what he knew about them without expecting some sort of trouble coming his way. Okoba hated to admit that he was mildly frightened of the dead girls that had once been so full of life but now just pretended to be so.

Okoba knew he was just going in circles here. He was trying to find rhyme or reason to all this and he just couldn't. With shaking hands, and realizing he was going nowhere, he focused instead on the living once more, moving straight to the families of the deceased. From the research he had gathered on the dead girls, Okoba already had some names. He already knew who Takeo Go was, and already had the names of Ai Mizuno, Junko Konno and Sakura Minamoto's parents, along with Nikaido's grandparents. He didn't have any family for Yugiri for obvious reasons and Zero was still a big unknown as it were.

Their families needed to know, at least, the living ones needed to know. They deserved to know what he had discovered, consequences be damned.

Making a few other notes, and a couple of internet searches later, Okoba got to work getting addresses and phone numbers, anything he could get his hands on, the talk of Nikko and the bear lost in the background.

* * *

It took Kotaro and the others ten minutes to find Sakura and her brother. The siblings had left the mall and the stranger behind and were now making their way to some other unknown place, walking and talking.

As Kotaro inched the van closer, he could see Sakura smiling, talking rather animatedly with her brother, eyes shining with a strange emotion. Her brother gives her a fond smile which vanishes the moment he sees the van approaching. He gives the vehicle a flat stare which Sakura notices. She blinks in surprise, turns and suddenly the van is right next to the siblings.

Kotaro lowers the window and stares at the road in front of him for a bit before turning to look at Sakura and then at Genji, who's still staring at him with that flat look. The manager turns to look at the road again and says to Sakura a little cold, "Get in. We're going home." Sakura opens her mouth, then closes it, shakes her head and then turns and smiles sadly at her brother.

"I'll see you, then," she tells him as the van's door opens and the other girls turned to stare at her, everyone with certain degrees of worry, anger and annoyance. Tae just seemed happy to see her friend and groaned her way, causing Genji to slightly raised an eyebrow at the behavior before he nodded at his sister.

"Sure. Take care," he says and watches as Sakura gets inside the van, as blondie closes the door with a loud huff, and then watches as the van begins to move, watching it disappear around the corner.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

The next day, Kotaro wakes up feeling as if something is about to change.

Yesterday, just as they made it back home, the girls had taken Sakura aside before their manager could begin his tirade about recent events, and had barricaded themselves in their room. There had been a lot of shouting, courtesy of Saki and a little bit from Ai, while Junko offered some calm with a few words here and there and Lily let out shocked gasps once in a while. Yugiri, well, Kotaro had heard nothing from her. It appeared that the courtesan had already figured something he himself had figured out a while back and was just keeping quiet, perhaps only wishing to interfere if the shouting got serious. Tae, for her part, had been rendered speechless by whatever the girls were talking about as he didn't hear a groan or a growl from her throughout it all. Eventually, the talk died down and a sort of peace was achieved between Saki, Ai and Sakura. Kotaro couldn't really hear what they talked about as they had kept themselves silent for a while, so when he decided to barge into the room and demand an explanation for Sakura, he had been rather surprised to find resistance at the door. The girls had locked him out and Saki had yelled at him that they were not practicing today and that was that.

Kotaro, of course, yelled at them in order to get a reaction but still, Saki and the others wouldn't budge. And now, they had lost a day of practice because of Sakura's annoying little brother.

Still, he couldn't help but be concerned about what she had done. He had expected her doing something like this, of course. Kotaro knew he couldn't keep Sakura away from her brother, much less keep the brother away from her. He'll have to make some calls. The master would probably know what to do about all this. Sure, the old man might not really consider it a big deal but Kotaro just couldn't trust the guy. Sakura, he knew, and had known for a few years before her untimely death at seventeen, but her brother? What did he know about her brother beyond some gossip from classmates here and there? The only thing Inui remembered was that they both had a terrible relationship brought upon by their parents' divorce and that was that. And Inui, Kotaro remembers, had not cared for that bratty teenager at all. How could he trust a guy like that? What if everything was just a ploy to get back at his sister? No. He just couldn't. He wouldn't let him.

Kotaro sighed.

(what was he thinking?)

He was suddenly tired. He wasn't thinking straight because he was worried about Sakura, because he was worried about the project. He just knew he couldn't lose Sakura and he knew that keeping her away from her brother, while painful, was for the best. Maybe after they saved Saga...maybe then...but until then it was back to work.

"GOOD MORNING LAD….ies…!?"

Kotaro stopped dead when he noticed the new face inside the dungeon.

The young man was seated, arms crossed, staring at the manager with an unimpressed look, his blue eyes alert and dangerous. Next to him, looking a bit nervous but determined, sat Sakura, taking Tae's usual place while the older woman sat in Saki's, leaning her head on the pink haired girl's shoulder. The other girls, too, had changed their seating arrangements, too. Saki sat in the middle, followed by Ai and Yugiri to her right and Junko and Lily to her left. They all stared at Kotaro with calm expressions, Ai and Saki glancing once or twice at the newcomer..

Everyone sat there, silent for a whole solid minute before Kotaro finally recovered his composure, pointed an accusing finger at Genki and cried out, "What...what is this!? Are we just letting outsiders in or what!?" He glared at Genji behind his sunglasses. "How did you even get inside!? Romero should have kept you outside!" As he said this, Romero walked underneath Genji's chair, and sat down, staring at Kotaro with calm, as he stuck his tongue out. "Well! Are you going to tell me how you got insiー"

"I broke in," Genji tells him, expression unchanged.

Kotaro just keeps glaring at him, and begins to walk from left to right, hands on his hips, fuming. "So!? SO!? You broke in!? Eh!? EH!? I should call the police!" Genji didn't seemed to be bothered by the threat, shrugging as a response.

"Do it, then."

"FINE!" Kotaro begins walking towards the door of the dungeon before he suddenly stops and much more calmly, asks Sakura, "What is he doing here?"

"I let him in," she answers.

And it's this response that lets Kotaro know that he has lost. There's no going back now. He can't possibly keep this brat away from Sakura now. Sakura wasn't going to let him.

Kotaro stares at Sakura and asks, "...why did you?" But before Sakura can respond her brother does it for her.

"I was bored."

That stops Kotaro, making him stare at Genji while Sakura sighs exasperatedly next to him. "Genji…"

"What…?"

"Look, Shades…" Saki began before Kotaro could say or scream anything else. "We talked about it and we figured it was fine. It was going to happen eventually, yeah?" The ex-biker glanced at Sakura and then shook her head. "We aren't exactly happy like you...but well..." Saki turned to Ai, who nodded Genji's way.

"He says he wants to give us a hand...to save Saga."

Genji's eyes brightened a bit and he said to Kotaro, "The girls tell me you write and compose their songs." Kotaro stared at him, unsure of where he was getting at.

"So?"

"I'm a freelance with sound design...I also do music compositions here and there." Genji uncrossed his arms and placed his hands over his lap. "I figured if I'm sticking around, I might as well be useful, yeah?"

Kotaro pursed his lips, crossed his arms over his chest and scoffed. "You think I don't have what it takes for this idols, is that it!?"

"No. I think I should just strangle you and get this over with."

"Genji!" Sakura gasped. "You promised you wouldn't…"

"Hey, I promised I wouldn't touch him. You said nothing about threats." Genji glared at Kotaro. "Look, I'm only doing this because I want to help my sister with whatever this is…" he raised a hand and waved it for emphasis before continuing, "and I'm planning to do it for free, so don't give me that attitude."

Before Kotaro could retort, Ai interrupted. "Is it really that bad that he's going to be helping us?" she asked. "We know you're upset about this. We are, too. But we are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt…why can't you?" Kotaro let out a deep breath.

"FINE! YOU STUPID ZOMBIES! TRUST HIM FOR ALL I CARE! BUT...HE'S NOT HELPING US JUST YET!" He pointed a finger at Genji. "YOU! WHERE'S YOUR PORTFOLIO!? How do I know you aren't going to screw it up!?" For the first time since this shouting began, Genji offered Kotaro a genuine smile and the older man was surprised on how much his smile resembled his older sister's.

"You're on."

* * *

Aoi Mizuno, from what little he could find of the woman, was a doctor of some prestige. Dr. Mizuno and her daughter had kept themselves at a distance at least when it came to the whole idol business that Ai was part of. Rumor had it that there had been some disagreement between mother and daughter but that happened everywhere.

From the bits and pieces Okoba could find, the doctor had kept herself out of the public eye for years now and many probably didn't know she was Ai Mizuno's mother. Reporters had hounded her for a few months after her daughter's death but even after all that media attention, the world had just forgotten about her. Okoba figured that was a good thing.

If people only remember you because your daughter had been burned alive by lightning in public, well, Okoba didn't even want to think about it.

Still, he didn't even know how she would react if he told her about Ai. Dr. Mizuno probably wouldn't believe him, most likely. He could show him the pictures in the calendar, of course, the ones were they showed their true form (probably) and confirm whether this was Ai or not. Maybe get her to Three and Ai's voice side by side and try to confirm it by herself.

There was a chance that she wasn't going to believe him, either way. Or maybe she would, after all, she had recently moved to Karatsu just a few months ago. Maybe she saw the same thing Takeo Go saw and wanted to prove it. It was just up to Okoba to prove it was all real.

The only thing he truly dreaded, however, was if Aoi Mizuno did believe him, how she was going to act at the end of it all?


	21. Fantastic Lovers, the Remix Part II

**21 / Fantastic Lovers, the Remix Part II**

The building was small, almost homely. It was a simple building, square all around, a small walkway made of stone going straight to the glass door, a large window by its side. There was a sign posted on the window that read, "Mizuno Clinic. Opening Soon," followed by a phone number and an email.

During his research, Okoba had found out, with some surprise, that Dr. Mizuno had actually moved all the way from Tokyo to Saga. At least, that's what the secretary at Mizuno's old workplace had told him. No one knew why she had decided to move all the way to Saga but with what Okoba knew now, it made sense. Dr. Mizuno had obviously seen that girl, that girl that shared her daughter's face, and had come to Saga looking for answers. But that was all speculation on Okoba's part. For all he knew, Dr. Mizuno had just moved from Tokyo on a whim, preferring the calm of Karatsu to the busy Tokyo Metropolis. Still, Okoba had an inkling that Mizuno moving to Saga was related to Franchouchou in some way, he just needed to play his cards right. He could still be wrong about everything after all.

For now, he gets out of the taxi, pulls out his phone and calls the number plastered on the sign. Then, he waits.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Aoi let out a small yawn as she glanced around the mostly empty room. There was the spotless desk, an armchair by the side and a large, rather bare bookshelf behind them. In a couple of days, the office will be fully furnished and then, Aoi will be open for business.

The loan had come through a couple of weeks ago but Aoi still had a long way to go. Aoi had yet to buy most of the equipment she'll need for the clinic, there was also the matter of getting extra chairs, more desks, more everything. There's also the matter of the secretary but Aoi figured she had to take care of the building first. The clinic had a few months to go before it was opened, after all. Aoi wasn't worried about the money. She had saved up for years for this, her own practice...her own…

(...but Ai was dead)

Some of the doctor's old patients had called a few days back, mostly to ask if she was doing alright while others asked her if she was opening her clinic soon. A handful of her old patients were more than willing to make a trip all the way to the Saga Prefecture just to see her. Her older patients had been seeing her for years now and weren't interested in changing doctors. Aoi had managed to talk down her older patients to find new doctors back in Tokyo, giving the elders names and addresses that she was familiar with that would take care of them. The younger patients, however, were a little stubborn but still, a few of them relented when Aoi pointed out the hassle they'll have to go through coming and going from Tokyo to Karatsu every time they had an appointment. Still, she was expecting a few familiar faces in the coming months once the clinic was opened and running.

Others called her, too.

They were the typical businessmen, some insurances businesses, scammers and the forgettable wrong numbers. All in all, everything was going well.

A part of her couldn't believe she's actually going through with this. Aoi knew that she wanted to open her own clinic one day, maybe her own hospital, but nothing had mattered when Ai had died. A clinic wouldn't be able to bring her daughter back. Nothing would. Ai would still be dead. And now, here she was in Saga, chasing her daughter's ghost.

Aoi didn't know why she kept doing this to herself.

(what was she looking for?)

Franchouchou were an odd group of girls that had made waves around Saga and were rather popular in Karatsu and Imari from what she had found on the internet. The girls were named Zero to Six, an odd choice of names if Aoi was being honest. Three was the one that had caught her eye almost immediately. The resemblance was almost uncanny. Three looked exactly like Ai, smiled like Ai, danced like Ai...at least, that's what Aoi kept imagining. Three was just a girl that looked like the dead Ai Mizuno, nothing more.

Aoi let herself fall unto her armchair, tired.

She couldn't keep doing this to herself.

That girl wasn't Ai. That girl had never been Ai. Ai was dead and buried and that wasー

_Bring…! Bring! Bring…!_

Aoi shakes out of her dark thoughts, letting out a sigh of relief as she goes to answer her phone. She's glad for the distraction, if only for a little while. Work had been a great distraction these years.

(and Ai was dead...Aoi had to learn to accept that)

"Yes?"

"Is...is this Dr. Aoi Mizuno?" the man's voice sounded nervous from the other end, coughing a bit as he finished his question. Aoi took a few seconds to react before nodding.

"Yes. Dr. Mizuno speaking. How may I help you, sir?"

"Ah, err...Dr. Mizuno," the man took a deep breath as if unsure of what to say next, "you, ah, eh...are you...are you taking any new patients?"

"Not at the moment, no." Aoi replied. "Are youー"

"I would like to talk to you about...a delicate situation," the man interrupted, "It's...it's rather urgent."

Aoi raised an eyebrow at that last remark, a little apprehensive.

Urgent matters were usually reserved for an emergency room unless it was a real private matter, the sort the man wouldn't want people to know. Criminals usually didn't come calling to the new gal in town, though, so that seemed out of the table. For now. Unless he wasー

" _Dr. Mizuno?"_

"Ah! Oh, yes...ah, yes...sorry about that...got a little distracted...for a moment," Aoi glanced at her empty desk and office before asking, "What did you say your name was?"

" _Okoba. Shinta Okoba."_

The doctor repeated the name in her head; not a name she was familiar with. Good. Or maybe not, depending on what he wanted to talk about. Aoi had the slight suspicion it wasn't to ask about her rates.

(was he one of the vultures that still remained?)

"I see...well, Mr. Okoba...if your problem is rather...urgent, as you say, I suppose I can make an exception. Why don't you meet me at the clinic? We can talkー"

" _I...I'm outside."_

"Oh! I...I see...alright...if you could just…"

" _Of course,"_ and with that, Okoba hung up, leaving Aoi alone with her thoughts once more. Aoi frowned, a part of her wondered if she should just leave Okoba waiting outside instead of letting him reopen the wounds of the past if Okoba was who she thought he was.

Aoi sighed. "Might as well get this over with…" The woman got up, threw her phone uncaringly on the desk and marched.

She hoped her assumptions about this mysterious Okoba, hoped with all her heart that he was just some shy patient and not a reporter in disguise here to sniff out a story that had long run its course.

* * *

Ai didn't really know what to think about Genji Kurosawa.

Her first impression of the guy involved him literally assaulting their manager and revealing that he knew that his dead sister was alive somehow, someway.

Aggression aside, Genji was practically an unknown. Sakura's personality was a total 180 compared to her brother's, who seemed to be blunt, antagonistic and quiet all in one. Kotaro, the girls had learned to handle, Genji on the other hand was a different matter altogether.

Saki had been furious when the girls made it back home after picking up Sakura from her little outing with her brother. Their leader had berated her for what seemed like hours with Sakura not even bothering to defend herself and Ai butting in once or twice (maybe more) into the conversation and saying a few things she regretted almost immediately. Sakura had accepted her punishment with a certain sad sort of grace, with her only defense being a rather lame whisper of "missing her brother". That little whisper had eventually stopped Saki in her rant, the ex-biker just letting out a groan and placing a hand on her forehead. They had stayed quiet after that, the sudden realization hitting them all at once.

Ai and the others had realized a little too late that Sakura's amnesia had caused the poor girl more harm than good in the long wrong. Sakura had forgotten herself for almost a whole year and now that her memories were back, so was the baggage that came with them.

The other girls knew who they were from the start. They remembered their lives, their families, their friends. Sakura, and Tae to a certain extent, did not. Sakura had been a blank slate the moment the other girls all woke up, unable to be anything but what Kotaro had told her to and latching unto that in hopes of recovering her memories. Their friend had been more worried about who she was that she hadn't worried about her parents, about her friends, about everyone, not like the other girls (minus Tae) had had.

Ai had missed her mother for the first few months before distracting herself with practice and work. Junko had accepted that her parents were dead. Lily accepted that she wouldn't see her father again. Saki had accepted that her gang was no more. Yugiri had accepted the passage of time. Tae had become more human, so to speak. And Sakura? Well, Sakura had just remembered her bad luck, her death and finally her family. Sakura did not have the time to get over the fact that she wouldn't see her family again and that baggage was something she had not had the time to deal with.

(Ai worries that it was this baggage that made her feel so down all those months back)

And now, Sakura had revealed herself in a moment of weakness.

The girls could trust Sakura but the same couldn't be said about her brother.

Once everything had settled down, Saki decided to give the guy a chance and Sakura had been ecstatic. It had been the happiest they had seen her in awhile, the happiest she had been outside of their concerts.

Away from Kotaro's prying eyes and ears, Sakura had called her brother using the mansion's only working phone, telling him to meet her friends early in the next day. Her brother had agreed in a heartbeat.

When morning arrived, Saki, Ai and Yugiri quickly met with Genji Kurosawa outside of the gate, the young man carrying a black laptop shaped bag next to him. He looked rather awake for someone that had woken up earlier than five in the morning. Saki went straight to the point, that they knew about them being zombies due to Sakura's revelation and that they were willing to let him in on their secret. The young man had just stared at Saki before nodding. Saki went on to say that just because he knew their secret didn't mean they could trust him fully just yet. Genji smirked when he told her that and said, "You don't know me and I don't know you. That's fair." Yugiri had just nodded with a smile, Saki had grunted and Ai had raised an eyebrow at him. Not the kind of response Ai had expected but it seemed fair enough.

Their meeting with Kotaro had gone well...sort of.

Kotaro had reacted just as Ai had predicted by screaming and pouting and getting annoyed. Genji had actually threatened Kotaro in the mix but it was obvious he had not meant the remark, at least, Ai hoped he hadn't. Sakura had chastised him of course but he hadn't seemed the least bit apologetic. Well, Kotaro's behavior rarely called for people to feel sorry for him.

Genji, as it turned out, was a freelance sound designer and someone like him was not bad to have. Especially if Kotaro ended up burning himself up. The fact he was willing to do it for free did not surprise Ai in the slightest, nor did the fact that Kotaro would try to fight him on the matter.

Their manager, despite everything he did and the weird way he went on about some things, was rather talented. He wrote and composed most of their songs and even had a hand in creating their routines for their dances. But Kotaro was just one man and he had plans to make the girls the most popular girls in Saga. he will eventually be forced to realize that he couldn't juggle everything by himself. It could take him days, maybe weeks, to get the lyrics going and a couple of days to get a song that fit, not to mention the dance moves.

If Genji proved to be as good as he said, Kotaro would only have to worry about the lyrics while the girls worried about their dance routines.

Ai glanced at Genji as he took out a laptop, it was a pink laptop surprisingly enough. It looked used, the color almost draining into a pale pink. Sakura seemed to recognize it almost instantly, smiling a bit. "Oh! My old laptop!"

Genji smirked. "Yep. The old reliable. Hasn't failed me yet…" He opened a few folders and clicked on a few other files here and there, Lily and Tae watching with great interest while Junko and Yugiri showed a few degrees of confusion. Saki glanced at Kotaro, noting the annoyed expression on his face. Ai just listened.

The tune was simple, like water, flowing all over the place, calm, cool, collected. Like ice. The next track was on fire, marching fast, beating drums, beating sticks. Third track was in between, calm one minute and calm the next. All in all, they were good.

Kotaro just scoffed. "That's it?"

Genji smirked his way, looking rather smug. "That's a preview, man...here, I'll make something so you can stop bitching." Sakura just sighed, shaking her head as her brother quickly opened a program and everyone watched as it opened. It looked like your typical run-of-the-mill music creation software. The one Genji had opened, however, seemed rather complicated, Ai saw wavelengths, too much menus, too much of everything she didn't understand. Genji turned towards the girls and asked, "So...what of composition do you want? I'll make it short and sweet."

"How about something that sounds cute!" Lily suddenly cried, her childish curiosity ignited by the program in front of her. Genji actually chuckled at that and nodded at Lily.

"Cute it is, then."

Ai tried not to be too impressed by the end result just ten minutes later.

* * *

Okoba nodded politely as he was led inside the clinic by Dr. Mizuno.

The reporter took a moment to examine the woman; Dr. Mizuno had longer hair, the same shade of blue as her daughter's already a bit of strands were turning white with age. Her face was older, sterner, a bit more serious than he was expecting, her light red eyes seemed fierce but tired as if the years were finally taking hold. All in all, Dr. Mizuno looked like a more stern, less happy, version of her daughter.

Okoba stared a bit around the rather empty room. A waiting room, most likely, as Dr. Mizuno watched him, silent as if judging him for something he had yet to do.

"Dr. Mizuno…" he began, throat suddenly dry, fingers shaking. Okoba knew this could only go two ways; either Mizuno wouldn't believe him and call the police, or she'll just kick him out and threatened to call the police.

"You said it was urgent, yes...Mr. Okoba, correct?"

"Ah, yes…well...you see...it's about…" Okoba took a deep breath. "It's about your daughter, Ai Mizuno."

Dr. Mizuno's expression suddenly changed. Gone was the tiredness from her eyes, instead, they seem to light on fire, forming a rather piercing glare. Her mouth formed a thin line. "...Get out." Mizuno's tone was cold and calculated, eyes still glaring at Okoba's own. Okoba knew he was threading over broken glass and he tried again.

"Listen, doctor...it's not what you…?"

"What I think…" Aoi Mizuno began, seething. "What I think is that you vultures won't stop until there's nothing of Ai left...she's dead...let her rest in peace. Now, get out." Aoi pointed at the door and began to walk away.

"Ah! Doctor! Wait, Iー"

"I'm not going to tell you again! Leave! Now!" Aoi was yelling now, eyes filled with despair. "Get out!" But Okoba stood his ground, stepping closer but still keeping his distance, he said,

"Ms. Mizuno...I know this is an upsetting topic but if you could just let me…"

"There's nothing more to say!" Aoi cried back. "Let my daughter rest in peace! Now, get out before I call the police! Do you hear me!? Get out! Get out!" Okoba took a few steps back but still stood his ground. Noticing that Okoba was planning on being stubborn, Aoi turned away, moving as fast as she could towards her empty office, internally cursing for leaving her phone behind.

"Listen! Doctor! Doctor! I know why you're here!" Okoba said, causing Aoi to stop in her tracks and stare at him, bewilderment clouding her rage. "Listen...Ms. Mizuno...I know why you came here...there's this girl that looks like Ai...right?" Aoi just stared at him, her eyes widening slightly. Realizing he had her attention, Okoba went on. "She's part of a local idol group...Franchouchou...goes by the name of Three." Aoi finally turned away, expression lost.

"...th-that has nothing to…"

"The resemblance is almost uncanny," Okoba went on, interrupting her. "Three could almost pass as her twin but your daughter was an only child, so that can't be it."

Aoi let out a shaky breath. "...so…? What are you trying to get at…?" Okoba was getting confident. He could do this, he could do this.

"You came to Saga because of that girl's resemblance to your daughter, right?" The doctor just looked away in shame, confirming what Okoba already knew. "A few months back, I also noticed the resemblance between Three and Ai...and a few days ago, I noticed something very peculiar...their voices."

"Their voices…?" Aoi whispered.

"Their voices were almost an exact match…almost perfect side by side." Okoba stepped closer. Aoi was looking paler and paler with each passing second. "Ms. Mizuno…" Aoi couldn't bare to look at him. "Three...Three is Ai." Aoi, suddenly angry, face still pale, glared at him.

"W-what are you talking about?"

"Three is Ai." Okoba repeated. "She's been brought back from the dead."

For a moment, Aoi just stared at Okoba, face expressing anger, confusion, and pain all at once. The doctor shook her head.

"That's...that's…"

And then, Okoba was taking out a piece of paper. It was a picture. Aoi had recognized it almost immediately. It was from that calendar she had bought weeks ago. That creepy photo of the girls, disguised as corpses. Okoba was pointing at Three. Her head lay on the lap of Four, while the rest of her body was sitting next to her, all bandaged up, like a mummy.

"Your daughter was burned from head to toe when that freak lightning struck her, wasn't she? Her body was a mess." Okoba tapped a finger on the picture. "Three's bandaged from head to toe, too. Her body is seemingly damaged beyond repair, right? Or at least, that's what the picture tells us. But, isn't it odd that Three here is basically a mummy? Ai's body was charred beyond recognition…"

"That...that doesn't prove anything…" Aoi says weakly, feeling a bit faint.

"Three isn't the only one, you know," the reporter suddenly says, pointing at Six and then at Four. "Four here is a dead ringer for Junko Konno...an idol from the 80s...Six here, is the living image of the famous child star, Lily Hoshikawa." Aoi is vaguely familiar with Lily Hoshikawa's name and shakes her head. "Two's doppelganger died in the late 90s...her name was Saki Nikaido...Five's was a woman named Yugiri, all the way from the Meiji period...and One...One is a hit-and-run victim named Sakura Minamoto...she died four months before your daughter was struck by lightning." Aoi just keeps shaking her head. All the names, except for Hoshikawa's, are unfamiliar to her. This is too much, this is not happening.

This guy, this guy was crazy, spouting nonsense, whispering nonsense, saying nonsense.

"Dr. Mizuno…"

"...Leave...please, leave…" Aoi doesn't have the energy to get angry. She's tired, tired of the past, tired of the ghosts.

"Dr. Mizuno…"

"...leave...just...just leave…"

Aoi turns and walks away, leaving Okoba behind in the empty room.

There's nothing else Okoba can't do. If Aoi won't believe him, there's nothing else to do. The man sighs, pockets the picture and turns to walk out. He's almost at the door before he takes out a small card from his shirt's pocket. It's his personal card from Sagazine. He takes a look around, notices the chairs and the boxes nearby and lays the card on the top of a box, hopeful that Aoi will find it and then, Okoba is gone.

Ten minutes later, Aoi decides to go home. She's tired, she just wants to fall into her bed and forget this day ever happened. The doctor spots Okoba's card almost immediately as she's digging for the keys to close up the clinic. Aoi hesitates for a few minutes before grabbing the card, holding it, staring at the number, unsure of what to do next.


	22. Stars and Revelations Part I

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll be taking a break next week, so no new chapter...sorry about that! Hope you enjoy!

**22 / Stars and Revelations Part I**

Kotaro didn't know whether to be impressed or just annoyed.

Sakura's kid brother had turned out to be good, much better than he had expected and Kotaro hated that. He supposed he shouldn't really be surprised. Sakura, bad luck aside, had been good at pretty much anything with enough motivation. Maybe it was a family thing. But, in his mind, Kotaro decides right then and there that Sakura is the only one with any talent and that's the end of that.

His frown deepens at the kid, who's looking all smug at the compliments the girls are throwing his way. Even Tae, legend that she is, is mystefied into silence. The thing that really gets to Kotaro, however, is the fact that the music matches a song he's been writing for a few days back. The happy beat, the little waves of sweetness, everything matches to the lyrics he's made. It's as if Genji made that song just to spite him and not because Lily had asked him to.

(and Sakura is smiling, too, and he's not so sure on what he's feeling)

"So, what's the verdict?" Genji asks, turning towards Kotaro, who's still silently fuming inside his head. Kotaro's frown is still in place as Genji and the zombies stare at him.

A 'hmph' is Kotaro's only reply.

"Well," Lily begins turning to Genji, "I think it's pretty cute!" Saki nods beside her and crosses her arms.

"It's alright...a little too girly for me, but it's a good beat."

"Aren't you in an idol group, though?" Genji asks, raising an eyebrow. "You're about as girly as it gets." Saki shrugged.

"I think it's a rather lovely tune," Junko says, eyes gazing with wonder at the program in the computer. Genji gave her a nod.

"Thanks."

Ai looked at the still opened program with mild interest before glancing at Kotaro and then giving Genji a nod. "I agree with Junko...it's a good song but…" she trailed off, Genji shrugged and sent a flat look at Kotaro.

"The man isn't," he finished dryly, making Saki laugh while Ai managed a tiny smile and Lily giggled. Sakura and Yugiri glanced at Kotaro, glancing at each other when the man let out an indignant cry.

"What's that supposed to mean, eh!?" the older man began, "You think you're better than me!? Is that it!?"

Genji shrugged. "I'm as good as I need to be."

Not really having a good retort for that last remark, Kotaro just grumbled.

"Tatsumi," Sakura said, ignoring as Kotaro began to grumble even louder. "Having Genji around can lessen your workload, right? Weren't you com-I mean, saying that we had a busy few months ahead of us?" Kotaro turned to the side, already recalling how he had explained (yelled) at the girls that they had a busy few months coming up. True, adding Genji to the team would help him with the songs and all that, and well, having someone like him around could prove useful. But Kotaro didn't trust the guy. It wasn't because he was jealous of how close he and Sakura were, no, it was just the principal of the matter. Still, he was pretty much stuck.

The other girls were more than willing to give him a chance, mostly out of their friendship with Sakura.

(they also probably figured that Sakura would become depressed again if they didn't let the kid stay)

Kotaro sighs, crosses his arms over his chest and says, "Alright! FINE! FINE YOU STUPID ZOMBIES!" Genji gives him a small glare at that last remark. "FINE! FINE! You're staying! But ..." He uncrossed his arms and pointed a finger towards the ceiling. "You are just on a trial period, you hear me!? On trial!"

"You're not even paying me…"

"TRIAL PERIOD! TRIAL PERIOD!" Kotaro cries over and over again before he recovers his composure and he turns away from the group. "I need some music done by the end of the day...so, get to it." The older man walks away and he's gone before Genji can ask him what the song is about.

* * *

Against her better judgement, Aoi decides to keep Okoba's card.

Once she gets home, the doctor goes straight to her laptop, staring at the screen for a while before she begins searching the names that Okoba mentioned. She left the calendar on the table, opened to the current month. There's Three, Two, Four and Zero wearing jackets, looking rather dangerous in a playground. Aoi's eyes softened as they fall on Three before shaking her head and typing the first name in the keyboard.

Aoi finds Hoshikawa almost instantly. She's a cute little thing, a star, gone too soon from this world. Six and Hoshikawa might as well be twins the more Aoi stares at child star's picture. It's rather troubling, this resemblance. Aoi is a doctor. She knows that the dead cannot come back to life. Perhaps Okoba was just exaggerating as all reporters tend to do to make a story work.

(but her mind wishes it were true...it could explain so much...if Ai were…)

Aoi types Konno's name next.

Four and Konno have the same problem that Aoi found with Six and Hoshikawa. But logic is setting in again. Maybe Konno had a child and this child had a child and that's howーbut Konno did not have any children. The young lady left this world too fast.

Nikaido. She's a criminal. There's records and everything. Died by jumping off of a cliff during what appeared to be a race and Two's wearing her face. Nikaido, too, seems to have no records of ever having children and Aoi cannot ask because the girl's only family passed away almost twenty years back.

For Yugiri, she can't find much. There's prints and some sketches. All depict a beautiful woman that shares Five's face.

Minamoto Sakura. Poor girl. Died four months before her Ai did. Hit-and-run. They never found her killer. The news report Aoi had found said that she was hit right in front of her home, her head split open. Aoi remembers the scar on One's face from that October photo. The doctor goes as far as to check the calendar again, flipping the pages until she arrives in the month of October. There's a scar on One's forehead, almost reaching her nose.

And then, there's Three. Three, who's bandaged from head to toe. Three, whose giving a very familiar smile as Four holds her head. Three, whoー

But everything is just a big coincidence, isn't it?

It's all very surreal.

Aoi is a doctor. She knows the difference between being dead and alive.

But how do you explain an idol group resembling the dead? How do you explain it? Distant relatives? Surgery? Disguises?

Everything had a proper explanation and yet, Aoi was already searching again.

The doctor played her daughter's famous song, "Fantastic Lovers", hearing Ai's sweet voice for a while before searching one of Franchouchou's songs. Okoba had mentioned how alike their voices sounded.

She found a video of an event in Imari. Pausing Iron Frill's song, Aoi hit play in the video and watched.

A few minutes later, Aoi begins to cry, her eyes clouded with tears as she stares at the screen as Franchouchou dances, paying attention to Three and how alike, no, how Ai sings and dances.

* * *

A day later, Okoba figures he should be lucky that Aoi didn't call the cops on him before he could explain his findings. Years ago, after Ai's untimely death, reporters had not let Ai's mother and the girls from Iron Frill in peace, printing article after article, talking about Ai, her accomplishments and her untimely demise on stage, a few sensationalizing the whole thing linking it to the gods and whatnot. Aoi had been hounded for days, as had Ai's bandmates. Iron Frill had separated not too long after Ai's demise. The agency had taken the disbandment quite well, although they might have taken it too well due to making bank out of the tragedy, as fans all over Japan and a few around the world bought all the merchandise featuring Ai and Iron Frill. The Fantastic Lovers CD had gone out of print in a year and in two, Iron Frill, from the exception of their dead leader, had been forgotten.

Okoba figured that he had rushed too soon. He had been concerned with Ms. Mizuno calling the police he had not showed restrain. And yet, when he had revealed everything, Okoba had not expected Aoi's defeated reaction. He had expected the anger, the denial but all his revelations revealed was a sad woman that had come looking for her daughter's ghost.

He decides to leave Aoi Mizuno be for the time being. If she believes him, she'll call, that is if she kept his card but chances are she had thrown it away.

Takeo Go is next on his list.

Nikaido's grandparents had passed away almost twenty years ago and there was no immediate family that cared. Konno's parents had died a while back, too. Finding next of kin had proven more trouble than what was worth. Minamoto's parents had proved to be rather elusive. It certainly didn't help that her mother had moved to a whole other continent and that her father wasn't taking any calls. Apparently, in the last five years, Minamoto's father had opened a company in Tokyo and despite making constant calls to get into contact with him, Okoba was ignored or told by the secretary that Mr. Minamoto was busy or that he didn't talk to reporters. Perhaps giving his name and letting the secretary do her own research had been a terrible idea.

And now, he was left with finding Takeo Go.

But he's not sure how to approach the man.

He knows from his research that Mr. Go is rather passive despite his large size. If he reacts with violence, Okoba knows that he's done for. Okoba needs to think carefully of what he needs to say to Takeo before dropping the bombshell. He'll probably get denial right off the bat but he won't know unless he tries.

Okoba picks up his phone and dials Takeo Go's number and then he waits.


	23. Stars and Revelations Part II

**23 / Stars and Revelations Part II**

Inside a modest-looking apartment, Takeo Go lets out a loud sigh, a hand over his face, thoughts racing.

An hour ago, Takeo was looking forward to enjoying his day off. He had gone grocery shopping, bought himself some popcorn and some drinks even added a few DVDs for his growing collection. The man had planned to spend his day off watching television like the good old days. He had been preparing popcorn when he got the call.

The caller had introduced himself as Shinta Okoba.

Takeo was familiar with that name. Shinta Okoba was the author of that article, the one about Saga Rock, the one that introduced Takeo to Franchouchou and Six, the girl that looked so much like his dead daughter. He's calling Takeo to talk about Lily Hoshikawa.

At first, Takeo is confused.

Reporters stopped calling him a long time ago. Lily was dead. There was no story here. People had already forgotten about Lily, about her fame, about everything. Lily Hoshikawa was the girl that had died too young, too quickly. So, why would anyone want toー

Takeo's eyes had gone wide as saucers when another possibility occurred to him.

Okoba had a story, apparently, and Takeo feared it was about Masao.

Masao Go, his son. Masao Go, his daughter.

(Lily Hoshikawa, the girl, the star, the dead)

That had been a rather confusing time for Takeo, the day Masao had decided to grow his hair. Masao had told him that he didn't like short hair, he had decided to grow it long, like his mother's.

The change had been slow, almost frighteningly so. Masao had preferred skirts to shorts, pretty shirts instead of the bland t-shirts. Takeo had seen nothing wrong. Clothes were just clothes. Masao could wear whatever he wanted.

There was nothing wrong with Masao. Masao was still Masao.

And then Masao had asked his father to start calling him Lily.

That's when Takeo really took notice. He had not minded the change before but now, Takeo couldn't outright ignore it.

But Masao was happy and Takeo figured he might as well be.

He'll still call him Masao, though. And Masao had learned to accept that part of hiーher father. They still cared about each other. Takeo loved Masao and Lily, but he secretly loved his son more than he had ever loved his daughter.

It was painful to think about. Difficult to understand sometimes. And maybe Masao, unconsciously, understood that. Not many parents were like her Pappy. Not many parents would have loved her like her Pappy did.

Lily was still Masao and Masao was still Lily.

And they were happy.

But then, Lily Hoshikawa wanted to become a star and that's when everything had begun to truly collapse.

Takeo had never truly understood his daughter, not really. He had loved her, both as Masao and as Lily, but he had never truly understood her. And when she became famous, Takeo became blinded by her rising fame.

(Masao had finally become just a name and Lily had become a star)

Very few people had known about Masao; from a few close family members, to a few producers and assistants, to the doctor that performed the autopsy. Masao had been their secret.

Even after death, the public had never found out about Masao and now, here was this Shinta Okoba saying he wanted to talk to Takeo about Lily.

There was a part of him that wanted to crush the tiny phone in his hands, rage engulfing him but Takeo stopped himself. On one hand, there was a possibility that Okoba had found out from an industry insider and had called to confirm it or Okoba was calling for something else entirely. Or maybe he wants money to avoid that particular story from getting out like Takeo secretly suspects.

Okoba immediately asks to meet him.

Takeo hesitates at first.

He's not willing to give the man his address, so instead, he asks Okoba to meet him at a local park. The park is mostly empty in the afternoon and most people tend to avoid Takeo anyway due to his large size, so this works perfectly.

Okoba had hesitated at first but then had agreed and decided to meet him tomorrow at the park after getting the address. He leaves Takeo behind with "it's not what you think, Mr. Go," before hanging up.

Takeo sat down and began to think, thoughts racing, a hand over his face.

He hopes he doesn't regret his decision.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

Takeo Go, Okoba realizes, is taller than he had expected.

Up close, Takeo seemed to tower the smallest tree. He also seems built like one, too. Muscles all over, tough-looking face and a scar decorating his left eye. He looks like a yakuza, here to hunt him down.

(and yet, Saki Nikaido kicked him into a stereo and knocked him out)

Takeo Go's face is cool and collected at least, Okoba hopes it is. The man has a look that could kill. Eyes have darkened considerably and he seems to be expelling smoke as he breathes in and out.

The reporter tries not to let his nerves take over like last time and offers Takeo Go a nod. Takeo returns it. Ah. The man's face has changed again. Okoba can see the softened expression turned less...uh, thuggish somehow.

They find a bench nearby, under a tree and sit down, Okoba on one side and Takeo and the other. The two men are almost shoulder to shoulder.

"Thank you for coming…" Okoba tells him and Takeo nods. The other man's not looking at him now. He's looking towards the park. There's very little about. It's safe to talk.

"You...you wanted to talk about Lily?" Takeo asks, slowly, putting a bit of emotion as he whispers Lily's name. Okoba nods.

"Yes...I was...wondering…" Okoba begins slowly, "If you were familiar with the idol group, Franchouchou?" That gets Takeo to react. His head raises up so high Okoba thinks it might float away. Takeo turns to stare at him, eyes wide. His thuggish face seems to have vanished.

"Ah...ah...yes, yes! I am."

"And you noticed the resemblance to your…?"

Takeo nods, a sad smile decorating his face. "Ah...yes...it's Six. She's...she's a cute kid." Okoba suspected as such. Like Aoi Mizuno, Takeo Go had seen the resemblance almost immediately. Of course, were Dr. Mizuno kept her distance, Mr. Go had actually managed to get close to his daughter only to be sent flying by Nikaido under the belief he wanted to hurt Lily. At least, that's what Okoba figured.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about," Okoba says, digging out his phone from his pocket and searching the picture he had saved inside. Takeo looks at him curiously before the reporter shows him the picture. Takeo's eyes widen again.

"Ah! What...what!?"

"This is a picture from a calendar Franchouchou released a few months ago," Okoba says. He offers Takeo the phone and the bigger man, so delicately, takes it from his hands. Takeo uses the touchscreen and expands the part of the picture that shows Six. There's a heart beating out of her chest. "I found it quite interesting and rather revealing."

"In...in what way?" Takeo asks him, unable to take his eyes off of the picture.

"Lily Hoshikawa died of a heart attack, did she not?" Takeo nods, eyes shining with unshed tears. "Six's heart looks like it exploded out of her chest in this picture, huh?" The big man smiles sadly. "It's not just...Six's heart, however...it's all of these girls…" Okoba took out a few photos from his pocket; the poor photos were all wrinkled. They were pictures of Ai Mizuno and Junko Konno when alive. He showed the pictures to Takeo. He blinked. "These two are Ai Mizuno, left, Junko Konno right," he pointed first at Ai then at Junko. "Both of these girls are dead."

"I...I am sorry...what?" Takeo just stares at him, unable to believe what he just heard. But Okoba doesn't let him recover, he continues on as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

"Mizuno died about ten years ago, going to eleven...Konno died in the early 80s...and Three and Four look a lot like them…" Takeo turned to stare at the phone and used his finger to move the picture around, his eyes settled on the whole group. Four had Three's head in her hands while Five had One's. Two looked like she was trying not to laugh as One's body crossed her arms over her chest and Zero looked a bit bored. "One, Two and Five have the same problem." Okoba took out three more pictures, one was a mugshot, one showed a smiling girl and the last one seemed to be of a painting. Takeo noticed the resemblance immediately, eyes scanning the new pictures before turning to the people in the phone. "Sakura Minamoto, Saki Nikaido, Yugiri...all deceased."

Okoba puts the pictures back into his pocket and nods. "Still can't find anything on Zero...but I'm going to guess that if I were to look around hard enough I would find a similar looking girl...dead as well…"

Takeo turned to face the man, a bit pale. "What...what are you going one with this…?"

The reporter turned to face him and with a straight face said, "I believe...that someone resurrected your daughter from the dead...Six isn't a girl that looks like your daughter...she is your daughter."

Takeo reacts by dropping Okoba's phone.

* * *

Aoi tried to keep herself as far as possible.

Franchouhou were already gathered at the stage, Three and the rest of the girls waving at their fans as the crowd cheered.

The doctor had arrived a little after six, the show had started at five o'clock. From what Aoi could gather from the crowd, Franchouchou had surprised them with a new song. It was an upbeat tune with Two and Six at the center. The girls were already getting ready to sing a few of their known songs and after that was over and done, were going to be taking pictures with fans and sell some merchandise.

Aoi wasn't planning to stay for long; she was planning to see the girls sing one song and then, she'll know if coming here had been worth it.

She took a deep breath.

Franchouchou got into their places with Three and Four at the center. And then, the music began.

Minutes later, Aoi would rush out of the room, unable to see Three, no, Ai, finish her song.

Aoi let out a few tears as she left.

The doctor had come here to confirm that everything she had found about yesterday had been nothing but a trick, that her eyes were seeing wrong and that Okoba was a mad bastard. But no, being here, almost face to face with Ai and the rest of those girls, Aoi wanted to cry out, wanted to break something.

Ai was there, she was dancing, she was singing, she was...alive? But how? How was that even possible!?

Aoi had heard Three's voice, had seen her dancing with confidence, had seen her...how!? How!? How was Ai alive again!? What was going on!?

The doctor still had Okoba's card but she couldn't call him now, not yet, anyway. She needed to compose herself. A part of her still wanted to believe that this was not happening but now Aoi couldn't run anymore.

(the dead were coming back to life)

And Aoi wouldn't run away anymore.

* * *

Takeo looks at Okoba as if he were crazy but Okoba just stares back, determined, eyes forward.

"Wh-what are you on about!? That'sー"

"Impossible?" Okoba finished. "I thought the same thing about two weeks ago, too...I thought, hey, maybe these girls just looked like the dead...it all seemed to be a weird coincidence." The reporter shook his head. "Two weeks ago, one of the girls was stabbed."

Takeo got up from the bench. "WHAT!?"

Okoba ignored Takeo's outburst, continuing the story as if it were no big deal. "One...was stabbed...right in her chest." Okoba tapped his chest with a finger. "There was no blood. Nothing." The man suddenly sighed, as if tired. "That's how I came to that conclusion...that those girls...were dead...all of them…" He stared at the big man, whose eyes were wide, face disbelieving. "There's a blog on the internet about Frnachouchou's first couple of shows. They had a zombie theme going on, apparently…" Okoba chuckled but then stopped and sighed again. "You can check the internet if you want...those names I told you. All dead. Even that picture I showed you," Okoba leaned down and picked up his phone, showing the calendar picture once more. "It seems a little too coincidental that all these girls, all sharing faces of the dead, have similar causes of dead in this picture…don't you think?"

Takeo shook his head. "You're mad."

"Maybe," Okoba shrugged. "But you saw the resemblance, too...didn't you?" Takeo turned his head away. "I saw you. In one of their shows. You disobeyed the rules and Nikaido, or as she calls herself, Two, kicked you." The big man flinched. "How do you explain that?"

"I was being an idiot…" Takeo says but it's obvious there's something more. "I...I...Masao…Lily…" Okoba raised an eyebrow at the unknown name but said nothing as Takeo sat on the bench again, a big hand over his face. "Oh...god...how...how…" The tears just slip from his fingers.

Okoba sits with him and waits until Takeo can't cry no more.

* * *

" _According to officials, the bear that had been terrorizing the area near Kagamiya has disappeared. For days now, officials have tried to locate the so-called 'Monster bear' that seems to have made it's home near Kagamiya and the pine forest of_ _Nijinomatsubara…"_

" _Evidence around the area suggests that an unknown party had been hunting the bear as well as officials have found tracks belonging to dogs, some tire tracks, and what seems to be the remains of a cage...more details will be provided as this story develops…"_


	24. Zombie See, Human Do

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not updating last week...have been feeling under the weather for a few days and that really saps the inspiration away.
> 
> See you next update!

**24 / Zombie See, Human Do**

Genji couldn't stop the small smile that was forming on his lips as he watched his older sister performing on stage. He noticed how Sakura looked so happy as she sang that he had almost forgotten that his sister had actually died eleven years ago and had been brought back to life as a zombie to be an idol.

Gently, he let his head fall against the wall behind him and let out a sigh. Just thinking about that little zombie problem was making him itch for a cigarette. Sakura would probably give him a look if she spotted him smoking but he just couldn't help it sometimes.

All this zombie idol business was making his head (and heart) hurt.

Genji figured that Kotaro Tatsumi was a sneaky little bastard. He knew that you just didn't go around reviving the dead without expecting something in return. Sure, the guy went about saying how  _his_  idols were going to  _save_  Saga and all that crap but the bastard could have done it without disturbing the dead. Everything started and ended with Saga with that crazy guy.

(as if Saga needed help saving)

Why involve the dead? Why involve his sister? What was Tatsumi's angle here? Why did this guy need to save Saga with the literal living dead? What wasー

Genji's headache returned tenfold. He groaned and shook his head.

Genji tried not to get too worried about all this nonsense.

He knew the moment people found out about Franchouchou's little secret, the group will be done for. That was the risk they were taking. If the wrong people found out about them being zombies they could be in grave danger.

(what would happen to the girls? To his sister?)

Up on stage, Franchouchou were getting in place to sing their next song, the crowd cheering and clapping with excitement all around.

Genji's eyes fell on the stage once more.

Sakura's smile was wide, her eyes sparkled with joy as she and her friends took their places and began their song. Another smile forms on his lips before it disappeared as if it never had been there in the first place.

Genji's trying not to think about the past as he sees his older sister smiling and singing. He tries not to think about all the times he had ignored his sister, tries not to think about that invitation to that concert, tries not to think about how both the fan and her idol died just a few months apart all those years back.

His eyes spot Ai, who's so full of energy, dancing and singing side by side with his sister. He lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

It was sad trying to think about.

Even if Sakura had not died that fateful day, nothing could have stopped the lighting strike that killed Ai Mizuno on stage.

(he's almost afraid of the what ifs, almost afraid to know what Sakura would have done had she actually seen Mizuno die on stage…)

Genji quickly puts those thoughts behind him as he notices Kotaro Tatsumi walk up toward him.

The older man has a cheeky grin on his face, sunglasses shining despite there not being much lightning backstage. Kotaro stops and grins Genji's way. "Well, Kurosawey," he says, making a point to mispronounce Genji's last name in a mocking tone. Genji rolls his eyes at the childish display. "What do you think?"

"About?"

"Franchouchou, of course!"

Genji glances at his happy sister before turning to face Kotaro. "They're alright." Kotaro frowns.

"That's it?"

"Pretty much."

"Hmph…" Kotaro's face darkens before he shakes his head and begins muttering to himself, "Pah! Alright, alright, he says...! They are legendary, damn it! Well...minus one but that's not the point...alright, alright…"

Genji raises an eyebrow at Kotaro's mumbling, taking particular notice of his mention of legends.

Sakura had told him very little about her bandmates; they were legendary, according to Kotaro, legendary and dead. A pair of legendary idols, a legendary biker, a legendary courtesan, a legendary child actress, and a legendary woman. Sakura was the only exception among the group but Genji figures that Sakura's old classmates might disagree, except she had only been legendary in the worst possible way.

(her bad luck had almost felt like a curse than a legend, no matter how much her classmates mocked her about it)

"I didn't say they were terrible," Genji said, glancing at the mumbling manager with an unimpressed look. "They're alright...by idol standards, and you know they are. They are practically new, so to speak." Kotaro decided to ignore him by mumbling a little louder. Genji sighs, eyes upward. "You and I both know that's true. Legends or not, they still need to work for that fame to save...Saga."

Kotaro stops his mumbling, glancing at Genji first before turning towards the stage. Sakura and the others are getting ready to sing another song. There's yelling, clapping, cheers, adoration all around. "They will save Saga...I know they will…" Genji says nothing to that.

* * *

Sakura stares at the laptop in her hands quizzically before staring at her brother. "Umm…" Genji crosses his arms over his chest and shrugs.

"It is  _your_  laptop," Genji says, shaking his head. "Don't know why you wouldn't want it back."

Sunday morning found the members of Franchouchou taking a break. Sakura's younger brother had arrived a few minutes ago, giving his sister the discolored pink laptop and saying that she should keep it.

"But don't you need it?" Genji shakes his head.

"I have two extra laptops at the apartment...it's fine...besides," he eyed Junko's old boombox in the corner, "You might need it."

"That thing is over ten years old, though," Lily points out, staring at the laptop before looking at Genji. "I'm surprised it still works!" Genji just grins.

"It works because I take good care of it," he shrugged again, "Besides, old parts are easy to replace if you know the right people...you'll be surprised how many hobbyists you can find in the States with the technical know-how on how to fix ten year-old laptops…" Sakura frowns.

"If you're sure…"

"Hey, I don't really need it...I have enough money to get me a new one if I feel like it." His sister finally relents with a nod and is quick to offer the laptop to a rather excited Ai, already giving her permission to use it if she wants to. The Heisei idol thanks her before she, Junko, and Lily go to the nearby table to set it up before shaking up a few things on the internet.

Genji stares around the common room, taking notice of Yamada Tae sprawled on the floor, snoring the morning away. Saki Nikaido seemed mildly interested in what Ai, Junko and Lily were doing with Sakura's old laptop while Yugiri offered him a small smile when his eyes fell on her. He acknowledged her with a nod before turning to his sister and asking, "So...what are your plans for today?"

"It's our day off," Saki answered him, sounding bored. "We can do whatever the hell we want." Genji said nothing about Saki's crud tone but he noticed Sakura sighing with mild exasperation. It seemed to him that Saki was still wary about him being around. Understandable.

"Well...we really don't have plans for today," Sakura tells him before her eyes widen slightly. "Oh! I can't believe I forgot!" Everyone turns to stare at the pink haired zombie with some confusion, well, everyone but Tae.

"What did you forget, Egghead?"

"The groceries...with everything that's happened the past few days...I forgot." Genji's a little confused by that.

"Huh? Groceries? I didn't think you'll need to eat...considering…"

"We are dead...doesn't stop us from getting hungry though," Ai said, eyes focused on the laptop in front of her as Junko and Lily looked over her shoulder.

"I see…"

Sakura, meanwhile, is already making a list in her head; cereal, eggs, meat, chicken, dried squid (a lot of dried squid), milk, sugar, more of this, more of that. The pink haired zombie nodded once before turning towards Saki. "Okay...I'm heading out now. Please let me know if you want me to bring you something." The other girls nodded while Genji just raised an eyebrow at that.

"Wait...you're going out shopping right now?"

"Ah, yes..."

Her brother seems to think about something for a bit before nodding to himself and saying, "I'll go with you." Sakura just sends him a grateful smile, nodding back.

Saki, meanwhile, sitting on the floor, legs crossed, frowns at the exchange. She's about to get up before a hand on her shoulder stops her. Looking up, Saki notices Yugiri's stare, her face passive with a small smile. The courtesan shakes her head calmly before turning to stare at Sakura, who's already getting ready to go outside. "Lady Sakura," Yugiri begins, smiling. "Would you like some help with your makeup?" Sakura smiles gratefully at Yugiri.

"Yes, please!"

Genji says nothing as his sister follows the older woman to another room. He notices Saki staring at him and he just shrugs and Saki, despite it all, shrugs back.

//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////…………………..

"You know," Sakura said, holding firmly onto the plastic bag full of food. "I'm actually surprised no one recognized me." Genji raised an eyebrow as he walked next to her. He was carrying two bags, full to the brim with food and drinks and snacks.

"You're not that popular yet," Genji pointed out, causing his sister to pout cutely at him. He laughed. "Heh...maybe they just weren't into idols, or maybe it was because you left your ribbon at home." Sakura raised a hand towards her hair, touching the place where her ribbon usually was as if to confirm it wasn't there. "I'm surprised you even took it off…" Sakura shrugged.

"Eh...Yugiri suggested that I leave without it…"

"Uh-huh."

"What?"

"Nothing…"

Sakura frowns at her brother but says nothing as they keep on walking. A few minutes later, they reach a familiar-looking cafe. The pink haired girl immediately perks up upon seeing the cakes on display. "Look, look!" she points animatedly at the cakes, smiling at her brother. "You think the girls would care for some cake?" Genji shrugged.

"I don't see why they wouldn't…sweets aren't going to kill them more than they already are..." But Sakura didn't seem to hear him as she was already walking towards the cafe, Genji following close behind.

"Hmm...still...Saki's not really into sweets, though...oh! I wonder if Yugiri likes sweet things…"

"Why wouldn't she like sweets?" Genji suddenly asks and he's so close to her that he makes his sister jump in surprise. Sakura glares at him a bit before shaking her head.

"Well...Yugiri is from a different...time, so..." Sakura shrugged.

"They had sweets back then, too, you know…" Genji responds, raising an eyebrow.

"Ah...y-yes...but, well…"

"You figured her way of life prevented her from enjoying a few little things like sweets, right?" Sakura said nothing. "Hey, I'm sure she'll let you know if the taste is terrible."

"Genji!"

"What? She's a pretty mature lady, I'm sure she's got you all figured out."

"Huh!?" Sakura's cheeks turned pink like her hair at the strange remark. "Wh-what that's supposed to mean!?" Genji laughed.

"So, I was right in the money!"

"A-about what!?"

"About you lー"

"Hey!"

Both siblings turned towards the newcomer. They both blinked in surprise when they recognized the young man from that day, the one that had headbutted that thug by accident. He was smiling, waving a hand towards them as he ran up to the siblings. "It's good to see you again!" Sakura couldn't help but wave back, a little confused, while her brother just stared at the newcomer with an unimpressed stare, his laughter gone.

"Never thought I'll run into you guys again!" the young man said, as soon as he got closer.

"Never thought we would, to be honest," Genji said honestly, having already forgotten of their fateful meeting and the thugs that chased them because of him. Sakura just smiled at the newcomer.

"Well, it's so good to see you, uh...we never did get your name…"

"It's Ryu, Suzuhara Ryu, but my friends call me Renoir," the young man, Renoir, said. "You know for an idol you're very fast," he complimented, making Sakura blink and then yelp in surprise. Genji frowned at the young man and noticing the stare Renoir raised his hands in apology. "Sorry! Sorry! It's just...I knew I had seen you before," he explained, "after a while, it clicked." Sakura gave him a rather nervous smile.

"O-oh well...it's fine…"

"And here you were complaining that no one could recognize you," Genji remarked, sounding a bit bored.

"Well, it's not everyday you run into an idol," Renoir whispers, trying to avoid the stares of the waitresses and some patrons that have already taken notice of them. "But now that you're here, I can pay you back for what you did, Miss One."

"Umm...you really don't have to…" Sakura begins only for Genji to but in.

"Well, we were going to buy some cake...maybe you can pay for it."

"Genji!"

"What? He's offering."

"That's not…!"

Renoir let out a small laugh. "I can see your brother is giving you a hard time," he didn't notice the look of surprise the siblings sent him as he went on, "I don't mind buying you that cake, I do owe you guys, after all." Renoir quickly turns around but he does it too fast and barely takes note of the guy behind him. Both young men slam their heads against each other, Renoir groaning as he goes to grab his cheek while the mysterious young man holds unto his mouth and nose.

Sakura lets out a gasp upon noticing the rather familiar group of people behind Renoir and Genji just groans in exasperation, "Really, man? Again!?"


	25. Human Eat Zombie World

**25 / Human Eat Zombie World**

Growing up, Sakura had been worried about three things; her family, her future, and her bad luck.

Sakura didn't know when her bad luck showed its ugly head in her life. It didn't matter what she did, it was always there, an ugly reminder that things were not going to be okay for long.

But Sakura had been optimistic; she had believed her bad luck was just things that happened. Staying at home sick after being cast for a play, happened to everyone. Missing those relay races time and time again, probably shouldn't have overextended herself. Her bikes getting destroyed, simple little accidents. And that test, the test that would see her in one of the most prestigious schools in the prefecture...well, that was Sakura's own fault for panicking.

Sakura hadn't really cared about her luck. Accidents happen. Everyone had their bad days andー

But Sakura's classmates had not cared.

The rumors had began during her first year in middle school. They called her a jinx, the bad luck magnet. They would whisper that anyone associated with Minamoto would be cursed with her bad luck.

Shiro, good ol' Shiro, she would get annoyed for Sakura most of the time. She had been one of the very few friends that had stayed around with her (and her terrible luck) since they met that day in grade school. Shiro would make faces, shake her head, grumble and insult the girls that were giggling about the "jinx". Sakura could still remember the mocking tone in which those nasty girls told Shiro, "You'll get stuck with her bad luck someday!" and would run off to go to class. Shiro would just glare at them as they left, shaking her head as Sakura stared after them with a lost look in her eyes.

The last year in middle school, just days after failing that exam (that stupid, stupid exam and her stupid, stupid bad luck), one of the smart asses in class had accidentally called her legendary. Sakura didn't know why or how, but that unleashed a whole new crown for her to wear, the "Legendary Jinx" and Sakura hated it.

Originally, Sakura had not cared for the "jinx" nickname. She figured they would get tired of it (of her) but then this idiot of a classmate misspells something and calls her legendary during lunch and it's already too late. She had been a legend and she hated it.

But by then, she had stopped caring. Her bad luck had already made her miserable enough. Those jerks could keep their stupid legend.

And then, Ai Mizuno had appeared in her life and inspired her with her words and music and Sakura decided to try again, bad luck and legend be damned...only to get hit by a truck just a year later.

She was dead and yet her bad luck followed her even in death.

And as she stared at the familiar looking face of that young man in the suit and messy brown hair, Sakura wondered if her classmates had been right about her bad luck...because seeing Renoir hit that guy again is too much of bad luck to just be a coincidence.

(maybe they had been right about her luck…)

"Are you freakin' kidding me!?" the redhead gasped, sounding more surprised than upset at seeing his friend holding unto his injured face. Glasses just stared blankly at the scene as messy hair groaned.

Sakura didn't wait for Renoir to respond before dropping the bag and grabbing his collar, pulling hard, forcing him away from the group. She turns them around and starts pulling unto his arm, and then starts running, Renoir clumsy trying to keep up. Genji stares back at the trio for a few seconds. They stare back, confused before the young man says a small "bye" and proceeds to throw the two heavy plastic bags at them, distracting them enough for him to follow after his fleeing sister and Renoir.

The trio recovered quickly and followed suit.

* * *

Yugiri couldn't help but be surprised at the small little device sitting upon Ai's lap.

Lily had explained to her what it was but Yugiri had a hard time accepting that this little "laptop"as they called it, was the same device found in their manager's room. That thing had been bigger, on a desk, and seemed to require a few extra pieces to fully function. This little thing did not. It appeared to run on it's own without any extra cables.

Ai was busy. Clicking on a few things here and there, dragging her fingers over what Lily had told her was the "touchpad", and trying to find something.

Eventually, their ever gracious leader, gave her a look and said, "What are you doing? You've been clicking at that same little globe for a while now…"

"I'm trying to connect to the internet," Ai responded, sounding a little annoyed when the globe failed to connect for the third or fourth time. "Seems like that weirdo doesn't actually have any wi-fi…" Clicking a fifth time and getting the same result made Ai glare at the computer as if it was somehow it's fault the internet was out of reach.

"Maybe the...internet is out…?" Junko offered but Ai just let out a small chuckle.

"Nah, it's definitely not out...damn it…ah, whatever. I'll check with Kotaro later...see if he has wireless..." Ai shook her head.

Saki leaned a little closer to the laptop; the wallpaper was rather lame, simple green glass and a blue sky; the icons were few, there was one for that music program Genji showed them, the internet icon, and a folder. The ex-biker squinted her eyes at the folder. It simply read "FOLDER", in all caps.

"This is Sakura's old computer, right?" Saki asked.

Ai nodded. "She recognized it...and well, her brother confirmed it...so it must be hers…" The idol smiled. "Besides the internet, it works pretty well despite its age."

Saki eyed the folder icon for a few seconds and turned to Ai. "You think it's got her old stuff in there, too?" At that, the other girls, who had crowded around Ai the moment Sakura and her brother left, turned towards their leader. Tae, for her part, was still fast asleep.

"...maybe," Ai starts and then gives Saki a look. "It's probably all gone now...why?"

"Eh, just curious...that's all."

"You wanna snoop around Sakura's things," Lily said dryly, glancing at her. The courtesan, standing next to her young friend, eyed the ex-biker, who had the decency to look a little guilty...just a little.

"Come on," Saki said, "You guys aren't the least bit curious?" Yugiri glanced at the other three girls, who seemed to be thinking about what to tell their leader. The courtesan, for her part, was just slightly curious about her friend's past. Sakura had not talked much about her past even when her memories fully returned. The few snippets they were able to get from her where mostly small and to the point, bad luck notwithstanding. Yugiri had been the only one Sakura had been fully honest about a few details but that's mostly because the courtesan had caught her in a few vulnerable moments. "Besides, Egghead probably won't mind...she did give it to you, so..." Ai pursed her lips.

Behind her, Lily looked a bit curious and Junko, standing next to Ai, seemed a bit unsure. Yugiri, kiseru in hand, turn her gaze away from their leader to stare at the machine.

Despite not fully understanding how this machine worked, the courtesan had figured that Genji would not have given them the laptop if he had thought it contain any private information. He certainly had not protested when Sakura passed the machine to Ai, either.

Sakura wouldn't really begrudge them for snooping around, as Lily had so bluntly put it, but Yugiri and the others had seen Sakura at her worst. If her worst came about because of her past, the courtesan feared they might be overstepping their boundaries.

Before Yugiri could point this out, Ai beats her to it with a sigh and says, "Fine. Only because I know you'll probably go behind our back and do it anyway." Saki grinned at that while Ai glanced at Junko behind her. The older idol nodded. "But...we are going to tell her when she gets here, though...no reason keeping it a secret…" Saki's grin grew wider.

"Fine by me!"

Yugiri just took a whiff of her kiseru and blew the smoke to the side; she saw Ai click on something on the screen. She glanced at the machine's screen. Ai had already opened the folder, allowing for a new window to pop up. They were three folders inside, all labelled with their own names; G. WORK, SAKURA'S, and OLD MAN, all written in capital letters. Yugiri raised an eyebrow at the third folder, wondering who this "OLD MAN" was.

The others stared at the screen for a few seconds, eyeing the folders with curiosity, only Saki seemed a bit confused by the labels before she shrugged. "Well...it's pretty obvious who 'G' stands for...but, old man...seriously?"

"Maybe that's how Genji refers to his father…?" Junko offered, a bit confused as well. Ai just shrugged at that.

Sakura might not have said it outloud to the others but when Sakura introduced her brother as Kurosawa instead of Minamoto, it had answered a few details that their friend had left behind. The others figured Sakura's parents had separated before her death and Genji just took on his mother's last name to no bother with his father's...at least, that's what Saki and Ai had agreed on.

"Did he use Sakura's computer too?" Lily wondered. Ai shrugged again and clicked the folder labeled SAKURA'S.

The girls were immediately greeted with a plethora of documents, labeled by year, month and day, all in order, starting from 2006. Saki actually took a step back, eyes widening a bit at the amount of documents inside the small folder.

"Jeez! What's all this!?"

"Her homework. Maybe," Lily remarked, eyeing the documents a bit. "Man...Sakura sure worked a lot...unless…"

"...unless Genji moved everything into a single folder," Ai finished with a nod. "Sakura bothered to label them...I'm guessing she had them in folders one time…"

"Click one," Saki told her.

Ai clicked the first document she spotted, 2007-10-4; upon opening the document it confirmed what Lily had said earlier. The document seemed to be notes for a class, math. They were neatly organized, surprising enough. A few questions were below some of the notes, the answers following after, with what appeared to be little notes made by Sakura to the side. Ai closed the first document and quickly moved to a new one, 2007-13-8. The same thing greeted them, an essay for a group project from the title. A few more clicks later, Ai found document after document, homework, notes, etc. Sakura had really been a good organizer and from what the girls had gathered just by the few documents they had seen, she was a damn good worker, too. Maybe she worked a little too much.

"Damn...Egghead...did ya even have any free time…?" Saki murmured.

"Seems she made copies of her notes," Ai commented. "Dated them all, too...that's...a lot of work…"

"Eh, maybe she had an extra strict teacher?" Lily offered; she herself had had a particular picky teacher before she hit it big in television. Yugiri said nothing behind her, lifting the kiseru to her lips, she blew out the smoke a few seconds later.

"Maybe," Ai commented, sounding unsure. She skipped over a few documents before reaching the final one, labeled "to-do list". Hovering the mouse over it, Ai noticed with some worry that someone had updated the document long after Sakura had passed away.

Had someone else opened it?

"Hey, what's that?" Saki asked, noticing the document. "'To-do list?' Eh, even in the computer…?"

"She probably had this one saved on the desktop," Ai remarked, opening the document.

This new document seemed much more to the point, there were dates, month and day, and minimal notes, like " _Need more eggs"_ or " _Forgot the flowers! Get them today!"_ , etc. The notes seemed rather normal but they soon noticed a repeating note like " _Don't forget lunch!", "Remind Dad of…" "Forgot his lunch! Take it to him after school!"_  and many more. Most were made almost a day after the other.

Yugiri forgot all about her kiseru and leaned closer.

Most of the notes seemed to be simple reminders for Sakura to deliver her father's lunch and dinner. Yugiri seemed mindly confused by this and figured that Sakura's father's work kept him very busy and Sakura did everything to help him out.

A few other notes seemed trivial, but the ones that caught her attention were the ones about Sakura's father. Yugiri frowned.

It almost seemed the man wouldn't have eaten at all if it weren't for Sakura.

The notes seemed to follow a pattern; work, her father, dinner, and some other random tidbits:

" _Shiro and Inue book report. Staying late!"_

" _Ms. Hanabi postponed test!"_

" _Due date! Wake up early! Take bento to offices!"_

" _He forgot again! Take food to offices! Remember to buy eggs and milk from Mr. Horoshi's shop!"_

" _Test! Test!"_

" _A few months! Can't wait! Buying tickets, today!"_

" _Forgot. Again."_

" _He's not coming today, either…forgot to buy…"_

" _Visiting mom...dropping off dinner...leaving a note…"_

And it went on and on, until, finally, they noticed a small phrase and the date, 2008-6-4: " _Tomorrow…wake up early!"_

There seemed to be more pages in the document but it was that last sentence that caught everyone's attention. The date seemed like a cruel joke now, considering that Sakura would die a day later. Yugiri wondered, sadly, what had gotten Sakura so excited about that day. Sakura never did explain much about anything when it came to her love of idols, Iron Frill, and admiration of Ai, except that she wanted to become one before she died. Perhaps that's why she didn't talk much about her date of death.

As the girls silently reread the date and the sentence, Lily tapped Ai's shoulder and pointed. "There's more...right?"

"Hmm?" Ai moved to the next page. Empty. The other page, empty as well. Until finally, they found a small note on the very end. This one had no date, as if it had been written with no sense or purpose.

" _...i couldn't…"_ it read.

Yugiri's eyes narrowed, while Saki and Ai leaned closer to the laptop, Junko and Lily seemed nervous.

Had...had Sakura written that?

Ai was suddenly shaking her head. "I...the computer saves up the dates...someone had opened this before we did…"

"Are you sure?" That was Saki, eyeing the little phrase. It almost seemed like a confession but of what, no one was sure.

"Y-yeah...most of the modern computers give a date and time from when they were last saved," Lily explained, sounding a bit nervous. "You think Genji wrote it?" No one said anything.

"We would have to ask Lord Genji for his...word on this," Yugiri finally said, glancing at her kiseru. She didn't feel like smoking anymore. "We are telling them, yes?" Before the girls could say anything, the door opening with a loud  _thud_ , caught them off-guard. Ai let out a squeak, and closed the laptop. Tae woke up with a groan, head twisting towards Sakura, wearing a jacket that seemed too big on her and soaking wet. Her makeup had appeared to have washed away a long time ago.

Yugiri and Saki quickly made their way towards her, while Lily, Junko and Ai, followed suit. Tae was already getting up to meet them.

"Egghead! What the hell hap-" But Saki was immediately cut off by Genji, who just like Sakura, was soaking wet. Over his shoulder, there was an unconscious young man. "What the!? What the hell!?"

"What happened?" Ai cried, sounding alarmed, staring at the stranger before staring at a nervous-looking Sakura and her brother.

"We kidnapped him, obviously," Genji said, causing his sister to hit him with her elbow for that smart-ass remark.

"We ran into trouble…" Sakura quickly explained, nodding at Renoir lying unconscious on Genji's shoulder. "And...and well, he saw...me…and...we...we just couldn't leave him there..."


	26. feat. the Parents

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did a few small edits...mostly because the beginning was a little confusing. Sorry about that.
> 
> And yes; this takes place during the middle of the last chapter.

**26 / feat. the Parents**

Everything started a few hours ago.

Sakura didn't know where she was going; she had been running for what seemed like hours, making turns, avoiding pedestrians, all the while hearing her brother and the stranger, Renoir, arguing in the background. Behind them, slightly out of breath, were the trio of suits.

"You want a rear view mirror for the next guy you're planning to hit, man!?" Genji cried out, huffing and puffing as he ran. "We lost our damn groceries because of you!" Renoir let out and indignant, and struggling, "Hey! I...huff!...I didn't do it on purpose!"

"Guys! Please! Not now!" Sakura yelled, dodging an old lady and her dog. Behind her, Genji did the same while Renoir almost crashed against the dog that barked in annoyance as the old lady grumbled at their carelessness. A few seconds later, the suits sidestepped the woman, the redhead sticking out his tongue at the dog that tried to get a bite in, as the old lady held him back.

"Twice! Twice in a week! That's gotta be some stupid record!" Genji said, completely ignoring his older sister's plea. Renoir frowned and shouted back.

"It was an accident!"

"Tell that to them!" Genji pointed a thumb back at the trio of thugs that were chasing them, his face a mix of tired and annoyed.

"They didn't even give me a chance last time! What makes you think they'll do now!?"

"Guys…!" That was Sakura again; she was starting to get tired of all the arguing (and hadn't they just passed that building a few minutes ago!? And that lady with that dog was back again!)

"Why the hell don't you watch where your big ass head is going, then!?" Genji retorted, still ignoring his worried sister.

"Look, Iーahh!" Before Renoir can respond, he's already falling. He slams hard unto the pavement, Genji actually stopping in pure disbelief of what is actually happening. Sakura, hearing Renoir's yelp, panics and puts on the breaks turning her head quickly, feeling it crack. She sees Renoir in the ground and a little far back, the trio of thugs, still running towards them.

"Genji!"

Her brother shakes his surprise away, grunts, and quickly grabs unto Renoir's legs while Sakura, with great care, grabs hold of Renoir's shirt and both siblings them pull him up. Instead of trying to get him back to his feet, the two of them just carry him, all the while Renoir protests halfheartedly. They keep running.

**/…..**

Behind them, Oki and his gang are struggling to keep up. They've been passing the same building for the last ten minutes, and that lady with the dog has finally given up and disappeared into another street, her little pooch barking all the way.

Oki would have been angry if he wasn't so busy trying to breath and admiring the pink haired girl from afar.

What a beauty. She moved with a bit of grace, tripping a few times here and there but recovering just as quickly. She sidestepped everyone like a pro, and seemed to be, out of all six of them, the least bothered by their running. Oki found it surprising that the two fools behind her had actually managed to keep up but then again he and the others were not doing much better.

The only reason they had even managed to keep them on their sights was because the poor girl was leading them all in circles. Oh, there's that building again.

Oki lets out a small laugh, breathing in and out fast.

"Wha-huff! What is so damn funny!?" Glasses asks; he's already looking worse for wear, his shirt and suit are soaked with his sweat and he's holding unto his glasses with one hand to stop them from slipping.

"Them," Oki comments, smile in place. His breathing is fast, his hair a mess (tragic), and his suit's already been ruined by a bit of sweat. "It's almost as if they planned this out in advance."

"Huff, huff...planned?" the redhead asks, running next to him. His red hair is wet with sweat, a few strands of it sticking like glue to his forehead as he keeps on running. "Hitting you in the face was a plan?"

"Huff…that guy...he's an idiot," Oki responds, a little out of breath as they make another turn. "It's either his luck or mine that got screwed over today."

"Maybe it...it is yours, man…" the redhead says, grinning despite it all. "You're the one that spotted that girl again, after all!" Glasses groans next to Oki. He sounds so tired.

"I still can't believe you want to ask her out after what she did last time!"

"Eh, details, details. She can throw as many milkshakes as she wants…I certainly won't mind." Glasses just groans louder.

"We are suppose to teach them a lesson, right!? That's the plan!"

"Only if we catch them," Oki pointed out. "Who knows? Maybe they'll like my proposition...would save us the trouble, wouldn't it?"

"Don't know, man…" the redhead mutters, he's beginning to tire out, running a little behind the others. "If your old man finds out thatー"

"Ahh!"

Oki and the others blinked in surprise as they saw one of them, the idiot that kept hitting Oki in the face, fall. Again. It was almost comical how everything happened. He would have laughed out loud if he wasn't so out of breath. Maybe they'll be able to catch them. But then, the pretty girl and her companion were already grabbing the guy, carrying him like a sack of potatoes. They don't dare look back. Oki actually can't help but laugh.

"Did it seriously happen again!?" the redhead cries. Glasses's head already hurts.

"This is so dumb...so dumb…" he mutters.

"Quite the dedication that girl has for a stranger, wouldn't you say?" Oki says, slowing down a bit. It's already obvious they're not going to catch them. He's tired and the other two are ready to collapse. They slow down, too, following his example.

"It's stupid," Glasses deadpans but Oki just smirks.

"Stupid dedication, then...I'll like to believe you guys would show that kind of dedication to your Boss."

"Well...uh...uhm…" the redhead begins, stopping. Oki stops with him, while Glasses stays still in front of them, his headache growing by the second. Oki raises an eyebrow at the redhead and the guy is looking at everything but at him. "I mean...you know, man...I, well...uhh...I wouldn't exactly carry you, you know? You're kinda heavy…" Oki stares at his companion, eyes a little wide, as if unable to believe such treachery. Glasses is beginning to pull his hair out, his glasses all but forgotten in the floor.

"Heavy? Me?"

"Is this really the conversation we're having right now!?" Glasses yells, stomping his foot as Oki looks at the redhead accusingly. The redhead, a little shyly, just scratches the back of his head and tries to change the subject. He points at the direction he's pretty sure the pretty girl and those two ran off to.

"Oh, look!" he says. "They're gone!"

**/…..**

"Phew...we...we made it," Sakura whispers.

The siblings and Renoir had managed to hide behind an old abandoned building, hiding behind one of the many trees and bushes that was overlooking a closed off canal, full to the brim with water of previous rains. On the other side of the canal, they could see the back of houses and business and with it a rather empty looking street. They were safe.

Renoir lets out a deep breath as Genji glances his way with mild annoyance before eyeing the canal with a bit of concern. All three of them walk out of their hiding place, pacing a little too close to the canal. Sakura, knowing the trouble she'll be if she fell, keeps her distance, walks behind Genji.

"That...that was a close call…" Renoir mutters only for Genji to scoff.

"No, that canal's close," Genji said. "This was just stupid."

"Genji…" Sakura didn't even have the energy to scold her brother; her dead body was finally catching up to all that running she did.

Distracted as she was, Sakura didn't see the small pebble until it was already too late. She tripped, falling straight into her younger brother's back, holding unto him. Genji, surprised by the sudden push, jumped a bit towards Renoir who put up no resistance, unfortunately this caused all three of them to fall into the canal.

A few seconds later, Genji and Renoir's heads appear. Renoir is shaking his head, trying to get the water out of his eyes, while Genji, angrily and dripping wet, is about yell at his sister only to stop cold.

Oh...oh...shit…

Genji doesn't dare try to dive underwater again to see if Sakura is okay. He's already pushing Renoir to the sidewalk, getting him out of the canal, trying to think of a way to get this guy out of here, trying to find a way to get out of here. He can see the bubbles where he knows Sakura's hiding. Unfortunately, so can Renoir.

"Is she okay!?" There's a slight panic in his voice and Genji would have been touched if his sister wasn't actually dead and trying to hide that fact underwater. "One! One!" Sakura's not coming out of the water and that's already worrying the guy that thinks she's not dead. Shit, shit!

"Sh-she's fine…!" Genji stupidly says, trying to dig into his brain to find an explanation for why Sakura's still underwater. "She's just..." But Renoir doesn't hear him. He's already jumping into the canal again. "Oh...oh fuck…"

Underwater, already cursing her bad luck, Sakura watches as Renoir dives into the canal again. Sakura's makeup had washed up as soon as she hit the water, and now, her true form was out in the open for all to see.

Sakura tried to swim away but someone was grabbing her arm. Looking up, she spotted Renoir, cheeks puffed, holding unto his breath, eyes closed, then opened. He stared at Sakura, unable to comprehend what was going on and then, his eyes widened and he opened his mouth to scream.

* * *

Takeo Go tried not to look too nervous in front of the rather imposing Aoi Mizuno, as he waited for Okoba to arrive.

It had been a day since the whole thing with Lily and those other dead girls from Franchouchou, a part of him sincerely couldn't really believe it. The other was ecstatic. His daughter was alive! His daughter was alive! His daughterー

But nothing made sense anymore.

His daughter was alive again. She had been dead, he had seen her body, he had buried her. How was it even possible?

(nothing made sense)

Aoi Mizuno couldn't help but stare at Takeo Go's form as she waited for Okoba to arrive.

The man was huge. Too big for it to be normal, or healthy.

Aoi remembered the times Ai would complain about being too small. She couldn't reach the cabinet, couldn't reach that book, couldn't this, couldn't that. Her daughter grew out of her little predicament as she got older and now she was dead.

And yet, the doctor was here, waiting outside this restaurant for a man that had just told her that Ai Mizuno, the legend, the dead girl, was alive and singing again. She wasn't going to run away. Not anymore.

The man grunted with a nod and Aoi, unsure of everything, nodded back.

Okoba arrived ten minutes later.

* * *

Renoir screamed.

There was a corpse (a corpse!) staring right at him. She's not moving, only staring at him with those dead, blue eyes, as Renoir keeps on screaming. She moves closer, spooking Renoir further. There's water in his lungs, there's a corpse trying to choke him. She's trying to grab his collar but Renoir slaps her hands away, but he's getting weaker, the water's making him heavier. And the damn corpse has his collar, she's choking (pushing) him, swimming towards the surface.

Renoir is too tired to scream but his instinct tells him to keep kicking; he flails his arms and legs around, trying to confuse the corpse so she'll let go. She doesn't.

The water is gone suddenly and Renoir is spitting the water, feeling something else grab him from behind.

He's too tired, he's too scared.

That guy, Genji, is dragging him to the side of the canal away from the corpse, away from her...but...no. The corpse is getting out of the water, she's talking, she's…

...it's One.

And Renoir sees no more as his eyes close and the darkness takes over.

**/…..**

"Is he okay?"

"He fainted… the idiot."

Sakura, wearing her brother's jacket, tries to hide her decaying face as she and Genji leaned over the fainted Renoir. Genji frowned over the young man, grumbling to himself.

"...okay," he said at last, getting up and offering his hand to Sakura. "Let's go."

"Wait...we can't leave him here!"

Genji sighs, the day's events finally catching up. "Yes, we can...he's fine...see, he's breathing and all that...now, let'sー"

"Genji." Sakura began, glaring. Her brother flinched. Sakura's expression was just as harsh as the old man's and he hated it. "We can't leave him here...those guys," her gaze softened, "if those guys find him they could really hurt him."

"And what do you suggest? We parade him all the way back to your house or mine?" Genji asks, a bit annoyed. "My apartment is at least an hour or so away without the taxi...and we obviously can't afford for anyone to see you…" Sakura shook her head.

"The mansion's closer...we'll go there…"

"This is a bad idea, Sakura…"

Sakura smiled a little sadly. "No, just my luck…"

Genji tried not to argue with her after that.

* * *

"Alright...so...here's everything…"

Okoba, Aoi and Takeo were already seated; they had decided for a table on the corner, making sure to avoid noisy neighbors and waitresses. Their orders had already been placed, two cups of coffee and green tea, their food was going to be a while.

Aoi grabbed the first folder Okoba had offered and began looking through it. They were copies of a blog, the important parts already highlighted with a yellow marker; the concert, the head banging, the girls jumping at the audience. It almost seemed that apart from one of them, that Minamoto girl, they had all lost control during the concert.

Takeo, too, had taken one of the folders. He was more delicate than Aoi was, taking his time. There's the blog posts that Okoba had told him about the other day and then, there was his notes. The word "zombie" popped up a lot in the notes.

Okoba, for his part, drank his coffee slowly, waiting until the two parents had read most of his notes and the blog posts of those metalheads. After a few minutes, Aoi and Takeo drop the folders. Takeo looks like he wants to break down and just glares at the table and Aoi is composed, unshed tears trying to spill out into her cheeks.

He takes another few sips from his coffee before putting the drink down and asking, "What do you think?"

Aoi speaks first. She's still composed, professional. "Too much of a coincidence," she says. "Those blogs mention that...that thing...that zombie storyline they had going for the first few concerts…"

"...but...zombies?" Takeo's next. He's not looking up, he's grabbing his head with his left hand, as if trying to contain a headache. "How...how does it…?"

"The resemblance in that calendar," Aoi says, tapping her finger a little too hard on the folder. "Ai," she sighed, "Ai...Ai was hit by lightning...her whole body was burned to a crisp…and...Three...is covered in bandages...it makes no sense when one thinks about...but...had Ai survived…" Aoi shakes her head.

"Lily...uh, Six…" Takeo says next, still looking at the table. "Six's heart is out of her chest...and she sounds...just like her…"

They are quiet for a while. A waitress approaches, asking if they want anything. Okoba orders some rice and meat dishes for everyone. He's pretty sure he's the only one that will be eating but does it nonetheless.

"What do you want to do?" Okoba asks once the waitress leaves. Both parents let out a sigh, unsure.

"What...what can be done…?" Takeo mutters, shaking his head. "Where do we go from here?"

"It's obvious they'll deny everything…like any other sensible person," Aoi points out. "We can't just barge in and demand an explanation…I know Ai...she's a smart girl...if...if she's willing to play the ingenue, she will play it...just so she won't be found out…" Takeo was nodding.

"Yes...Lily...uh...she did the same thing...pretended she didn't know me…"

Okoba just nodded.

"So, it's a matter of them revealing themselves to you, then…?"

"Ai isn't so easily fooled…" Aoi said without much energy.

"Lily's a smart kid," Takeo whispers, a smile in place, despite the tears that are falling.

Okoba nods, understanding their reasoning. "So, that leaves us with the other girls…"

"What about them?" Aoi asks, passing a hand over her eyes, trying to keep the tears at bay. "Do their...parents...not know?" Okoba shook his head.

"Minamoto's father...her only relative currently living in Japan is...unavailable. I made some calls to his workplace and was cut off. They found out about my profession and thought the worst." Aoi just shrugged, unable to disagree with that remark. "Konno's parents died a few years after her accident...and well, that girl, Zero...still can't find a name to put her...and well, Yugiri is out for obvious reasons...but…" Aoi and Take turned to Okoba, who seemed to be thinking about something. "Nikaido...someone in Saga must know who she is…"

"Her parents?" Takeo wondered but Okoba just shook his head.

"Nah...her grandparents were her caretakers...they died twenty years ago, a bit after she did...but...Nikaido...Nikaido was a member of the gang...Dorami." Aoi didn't say anything. Her ears unfamiliar with the name but Takeo stared at him, eyes wide.

"Dorami...that...that...Dorami…"

"You know them?"

Takeo nodded, slowly. "Ah, yes...yes...they were...they had been a big deal in the 90s...a biker gang, yes?" Okoba nodded. "Hmm...one of my coworkers had run into a group of girls, bikers...and they stole his money...called themselves Dorami…"

"There's an actual gang member in that idol group?" Aoi asked, almost unable to believe it.

Okoba shrugged. "This situation is rather strange enough...nothing can really surprise me." He took a sip of his coffee and went on, "Nikaido and some other girl created the Dorami to fight another gang...however, after Nikaido's death, that first gang broke up...the ones that have been Dorami for a few years now are the girls that stayed behind…" Aoi raised an eyebrow.

"And your point…?"

"Reiko Kirishima…"

"Who?"

"Reiko Kirishima was the leader of Dorami when Nikaido was alive," Okoba explained. "If anyone knows or cares about Nikaido it would be her…"

"And you expect her to believe this story? There's a part of me that has trouble believing it...even after...all this…" Aoi said, gesturing towards the folders.

"That's a chance I can take…"

At that, all three adults remained silent, even as the waitress appeared with their meals.


	27. Corpse-explaining

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the major delay! Had a bit of writer's block going into this chapter...to the point I ended up making it a little bit short. Next chapter will be a bit longer. Hopefully.
> 
> I might or might not post next week...it all depends how the writing goes. But don't worry, I will try my best. See you next time.

**27 / Corpse-explaining**

Yugiri was a bit concerned upon noticing Sakura's clothes dripping wet and her makeup all but gone from her pretty face; her concern doubled upon seeing the stranger upon Genji's shoulder. Standing next to the courtesan, grumbling to herself, was Saki, who was already slapping her forehead with one of her hands.

"Sakura...what the fuck…?"

Sakura shrugged. "He was drowning…"

"Only because of you," Genji commented before unceremoniously dropping Renoir to the floor. Junko and Lily flinched at the small  _thud_  sound the young man made upon impact.

"Genji!"

"What? He's fine. He's not going to die from that."

Yugiri moved a bit towards Sakura, glancing at the young man. Ah. She recognized him. It was that boy that had headbutted that annoying young man. "Oh, did it happen again?" Genji looked at her for a few seconds, chuckled and nodded.

"He did. We lost our groceries. Had a run around the same street for ten minutes. Fell into a canal. Oh, and he thought Sakura was drowning and that's how we got into this mess in the first place." Yugiri nodded.

Poor boy. His noble actions had caused him quite the scare.

"Wait, wait…" Ai began, raising a hand, "Did he...did he see you losing your makeup!?" Nearby, Tae was kneeling over Renoir, staring at him for a few seconds before beginning to poke him on the stomach.

"...yeah…"

Everyone was silent as Tae kept on poking the unconscious body by their feet.

Sakura sighed and shook her head. "I guess...I guess we should just tell him…" Saki was in front of her, already glaring.

"No way in hell, girl! Your bro here is the exception. If you thinkー"

"We can't just go on pretending this didn't happen," Sakura interrupts. "You want him to go crazy the next time he sees me? He saw Number One falling into a canal and then, he saw a corpse. You think he'll just chalk it up as a dream?" Saki crossed her arms.

"That other asshole hasn't come calling...so why's this moron any different!?"

"Because that other asshole," Sakura said, her eyes resolute, "didn't get a chance to see his handiwork before Yugiri hit him and Kotaro knocked him out." Genji raised an eyebrow at that but said nothing as Saki groaned louder. Ai sighed next to her, seeing Sakura's logic.

"She's...she's got a point...It's possible that the next time he sees Sakura as an idol...he'll flip. We have gotten lucky the last few times…"

"Wait…" Genji intervene, looking from Ai to Sakura, "People have seen you?"

On the ground, Tae had began to poke the unconscious Renoir in the face.

Yugiri nodded. "Accidents, I assure you...but they always witness our decayed state."

"They only catch you without your makeup, huh?" Genji asks, directing the question to Sakura who sighs. "I'm surprised you haven't tripped any of your friends into canals." His sister just shrugs.

"There's not a lot of rocks for me to trip on," she says.

"Hmm…" Genji turned to the others. "Still...this is your call…but be quick about it. He's gonna wake up soon and probably run off the moment he sees the extra six corpses."

Saki lets out a loud sigh, shakes her head and glares at the unconscious Renoir; Tae still poking him in the face. The leader turns to Sakura and nods begrudgingly, "Let's get this over with…"

**/…..**

Renoir's head began hurting as soon as he opened his eyes; a headache was coming, he was sure. He could already hear ringing in his ears, could feel the palpitations, everything. He felt like he had taken an all-nighter and then dunked his head on cold water to stay awake. He was shaking a bit, clothes sticking to his body like he had been sweating a storm. Renoir cursed internally. Of course, he was going to get sick now.

He blinked, trying to adjust his eyes to the darkness. Renoir blinked again. What the..? That's weird. When did he get home…? He remembers going out to get a coffee and then...Renoir's eyes slowly widened as the day's events flooded his mind: the cafe, running into One and her older brother, running into those thugs, falling into a canal...seeing the corpse...seeing One...seeing a corpse...a corpse that was staring straight at him!

Renoir almost screamed when he noticed the decaying body approaching him. Her skin was blue, a bandage on her arm, and a bit on her legs, a few scars on them as well, but it was the scar on her forehead that caught his attention the most. It looked about ready to split her head open and reveal her brains.

"Renoir," the corpse began, but Renoir wasn't having it. He tried to get up, only to feel someone holding unto his collar and then, he opened his mouth to scream. Someone whacked on the back of the head for his trouble. He turned and a pair of blue eyes glared back of him.

"Shut up."

"Genji," the corpse said. "Please don't hurt him. He's scared."

"Of a little girl," Genji retorted, glancing at the terrified Renoir, who was becoming more confused by the minute. The corpse sighed and kneeled by Renoir's feet, making absolutely sure to not make contact as she did so. She smiled, hoping to comfort him in some way or so Renoir thought. He gulped. The corpse sighed again before scratching the back of her head with her bandaged arm.

"Umm...I know you must be a little confused…"

"A little!?" Renoir suddenly interrupted, eyes wide. "A little!? What the…? What is this…!?" He closed his eyes and covered them with his hands for good measure before whispering, "...just a dream...just a bad dream...will be waking up any second nowー" He felt someone remove his hands from his eyes and daring a look, stared at the blue eyes of Genji, who stared back, looking rather bored.

"Sorry to break it to you, pal...this is not a dream, and you'll do well to listen," he nodded towards the corpse, who sighed.

"Renoir…" she said again, but Renoir was shaking his head.

"You...you...are...you're One, right? What the..!? What the heck!?" He tried to drag himself up but Genji held him firm by the collar.

The corpse, One, smiled a bit. Her nervous smile almost looked innocent. Almost.

"It's...ah, well...it's not really a long story," One seemed to think about something before she shook her head. "Well, it's...you might have noticed...I'm...a zombie."

"A zombie!?"

"No, an idol." Genji said, rolling his eyes while One sent him an annoyed look before turning towards Renoir whose jaw was about to literally hit the floor.

"My...my real name is Sakura Minamoto," One, no, Sakura, introduced herself. "And I died eleven years ago."

* * *

" _What? Hah! If you think I'm going to help you again, think again, Okoba!"_

"Uhm...did something happen...?"

" _You bet something fucking happened!"_

Okoba flinched slightly, moving the phone away from his ear for a few seconds before holding it close again. "Wh-what happened, Yoshi?" Sitting in front of him, Aoi gave the man and his phone an unimpressed look while Takeo tried to make himself smaller on his seat, playing a bit with his food with his chopsticks, unsure of whether to eat or not.

" _That's the last time I ever help you, you hear me!?"_  the man, Yoshi, replied, sounding absolutely livid. " _I almost got canned!"_

"Bu-but how!? You'll always provided information so why…?"

" _It was that new system they installed a few months ago!"_  Yoshi growled. " _Tells the officers if a copy of the reports were printed or emailed...and guess what!? Guess fucking what!? They found out I've been giving a reporter info about a pair of dead kids! If it hadn't been for that detective asshole I wouldn't be in this mess...in fact, I probably shouldn't have listened to you at all!"_

"Wait...detective?"

" _Some asshole that took interest in a cold case! Fuck him! And fuck you!"_

"Yoshi...listen, I…"

" _No, Okoba, you listen!"_ the man yelled, forcing Okoba to flinched again due to the volume. " _You're on your own for the rest of the freakin' year! Get it! Hire some other moron!"_

"Yoshi...ah, Yoshi…! At least, do you think you can send me to someone else to talk to, this is very important…!"

" _Talk to my ass!"_  And with that, the man on the other end hangs up.

Aoi clears her throat as Okoba sighs and places his phone on the table. "I'm thinking his little snark at the end there won't be of much help in the long run." Takeo makes a great effort to not chuckle at that remark as Okoba shakes his head.

"Yoshi will cool down...this has happened before…" Okoba told her. "But...it can make things really difficult…I figured with Kirishima in the system it would be easy to find an address…"

"Nothing says she's still living there, though," Aoi pointed out. Okoba nodded.

"True...but it can give me an estimate...Kirishima is probably still living in Saga...but where, that is the question."

"What makes you think she's still in Saga?" Takeo asked him, leaning a bit.

"There was a rumor about Dorami making a comeback...I found that out from a blog a few days into my investigation." Okoba explained. "Dorami had been spotted around Karatsu...they had a dispute with another gang...I'm guessing that it was that Korosuke gang...but...something interesting happen." Okoba leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. "A bike was found on the foot of Mt. Kagamiyama...destroyed. Someone had jumped off that cliff, there's damage to prove it...but that bike, that bike has no explanation. And apparently, that bike is related to Dorami suddenly disappearing and Korosuke stopping their dispute with the members...at least, according to the blog...I didn't bother to look too much into those little troublemakers…"

Aoi seemed to think about something for a few seconds. "Are you thinking that Nikaido had a run-in with her old gang?" Okoba looked at her, suddenly confused. "You think she might her repeated her little stunt to protect that new Dorami?"

"Umm...what gave you that idea?" the reporter asks her and Aoi shrugs.

"Just throwing a few things out there...no one knows who that bike belongs to?"

Okoba shook his head. "No one. It doesn't have any records. Someone probably bought it off from a scrapyard, did a few modifications here and there. If there's any records, it's probably from its original owner before throwing it away." He sighed again. "Either way...it doesn't get us any closer to Kirishima...but...it gives us a clue…"

"Better than that ass-talk, I'm guessing," Aoi remarked dryly. Takeo chuckled. Okoba sighed and shook his head despite the small smile on his face.

"Well...she's the last piece of this puzzle...if anyone knows Saki...it's her…"


	28. Dorami Club for Lost Girls

**28 / Dorami Club for Lost Girls**

Saki tried not to grumble as she and the other girls hid in the shadows watching as Sakura tried to calm the panicking young man with her brother offering his brand of uncaring support all the way; he seemed to be just as annoyed by this mess as Saki was.

The ex-biker still can't believe she actually agreed to this crap. If anything, she should have just said screw it and thrown the guy out to fend for himself in the street and she's willing to bet Sakura's brother would have let her. Not that he could do anything about the whole zombie situation. The guy would probably try to avoid them out of fear, and besides, who'd believe him if he squealed?

Unfortunately for everyone, Sakura was just too soft-hearted, too nice, too...caring.

It wasn't fair, really.

Saki had had a reputation for being tough, she was a legend after all but when it came to her friends, she was a complete pushover. Reiko had taken advantage of that particular weakness to get her way a couple of times, especially when it came to picking places to get dinner with the rest of the gang (even Reiko got tired of chicken everyday). And not to mention Susan's mutt. Goddammit. The pooch would just look at her with his beady little eyes after he had already peed all over the place and Saki would forgive him in a heartbeat. Not that it stopped Saki from yelling at Susan once in a while as she and the other girls cleaned the dirty tires.

"Nothing a little water couldn't fix," Reiko used to say.

Except in their case, water seemed to bring them the worst kind of luck possible; Shades should have bought them some freakin' waterproof makeup by now, all things considered and no, that fucking shoe spray didn't count.

Saki can still remember how lucky she and Ai had been during that storm; Ai had been in a state but at least no one had seen them, everyone busy trying to avoid the rain to care. Big sis and the Shrimp had come after them after the worst of the rain had calmed down, carrying a pair of jackets and hiding under an umbrella. Sakura herself had gotten soaked somehow while she went to get Junko to come back home.

Nothing a little water couldn't ruin, really.

It was always water. Water, freakin' water. And maybe Shades's bullshit, too. Most definitelyー

Saki's eyes suddenly widened. "...oh...shit…" Ai and Yugiri glanced at her, their red eyes blinking with confusion.

"...what's wrong?" Ai whispered back as silently as she could but before Saki could answer, the door of their room is flung open, slamming hard unto the wall causing Sakura and the strange boy to almost jump, and in comes Kotaro, marching, already yelling.

"HELLOOOO, LADIES! HOW ARE YOU TOー" He stopped short finally taking notice of the young man, who's staring at Kotaro, wide-eyed. Genji's glaring at him as Sakura was already placing a hand on her face, suddenly realizing that everything has become much more complicated. "...who…? ...whaaattt…? WHAAAAATTTTT!?"

On impulse, Saki jumps out of the shadows, followed by the rest of the girls. The young man, Renoir, turned to stare at them. His face pales even more, and his mouth is half opened as if he wants to scream. Genji turns to face them and raises an eyebrow. Ai returns the look with a pathetic shrug. Yeah, they got nothing.

Kotaro quickly turns away from Renoir and frowns Genji's way. "You!" Genji blinks, turning to face Kotaro. "What is wrong with you!? Was this your doing!?" Sakura tries to get between the two, trying to calm the older man.

"Tatsumi! Wait, heー"

"I knew it! I knew you'd be trouble from the start!"

Genji scowls. "As if this whole mess wasn't your fault to begin with."

"Hah! As if! You're the one that's inviting strangers into this house! You're the one that's putting my idols in danger!"

"I'm not the one who's going around reviving the dead!" Genji growls back, making a move to get up and meet Kotaro's remarks with his fists.

"Tatsumi! Genji! Stop this!"

By now, Renoir is staring at the arguing pair in disbelief, the suddenness of the argument had seemed to have taken the fear out of him, somewhat. Nearby, the zombie girls themselves were also staring; Lily's holding unto Junko's skirt while the latter is holding unto Ai's arm, afraid of the obvious brawl that's about to ensue. Ai's standing still, unsure if she should interfere as Sakura's trying in vain to stop the two young men from hurting each other. Tae, for her part, is just standing there, blinking, unsure of what to make out of the argument.

"I KNEW YOU WOULD BE TROUBLE THE MOMENT I MET YOU, YOU GOOD-FOR-NOTHING YANKEE!" Genji actually stands up, glaring. Saki has to move quickly, try to beat some sense into Shades and Sakura's brother but she feels an arm on her shoulder. It's Yugiri. She's shaking her head, staring to the side at Sakura.

Sakura was calm when moments ago she was nervous. There's a cold, almost lifeless look in her eyes and that's saying something.

"TATSUMI!" Sakura yells, distracting the two men from their argument to stare at the pink haired zombie. Genji actually flinches when Sakura turns her cold look at him, as if he was reminded of something from the past. Kotaro actually gulps.

Sakura was pissed.

If looks could kill, both of them would be dead twice over.

"We brought him here...it was my idea," Sakura said calmly, her eyes glued on Kotaro. "Genji had nothing to do with it. Leave. Him. Alone." That last part is not a request, it's an order and Saki has to stop herself from whistling.

That's a different kind of backbone Sakura's showing alright. Nothing like that time she got upset at Saki during their rap battle or during their camping trip or when she was being a moody bitch.

This was somehow different...as if Sakura was trying to emulate a different person and succeeding.

Everyone is silent for a couple of seconds, Kotaro turns to look at the side, and takes a deep breath. Genji just glances away from Sakura's gaze. Renoir for his part, is still staring, wide-eyed at the scene and he lets out a breath, catching Kotaro's attention.

Their manager suddenly kneels in front of Renoir, with Sakura blinking the coldness away, not really expecting that. Genji glances at Kotaro but says nothing. Kotaro stares at Renoir for what seems like minutes before he stretches his hand. "Good morning," he begins as if nothing had actually happened. "My name is Tatsumi Kotaro, manager of Franchouchou," he went on. "How are you? How are you? Sorry for that poor display in manners…" He leaned closer and whispered, a little too loudly, "He's new." Genji glared at him before rolling his eyes. "So?" Renoir gulps as Kotaro leans even closer. "If you reveal what you saw today, I won't hesitate...to BURY YOU IN A DITCH, TROUBLEMAKER!"

"ACK!"

"Tatsumi!"

"What!?"

Despite everything that's been happening, Saki just places a hand over her face and groans as the other girls give Kotaro flat stares, minus Tae who's groaning.

Genji sighs, and quickly helps the young man up before Kotaro screams at his face again. "Okay, this isn't working at all." He turned towards the rest of the girls. "He's coming with me...I'll see if I can explain things properly outside away from the moron, over here." Saki nods, seeing his point.

Kotaro was hot and cold all the way and even with Sakura giving him the evil eye, she doubted he'll take it easy with someone else knowing their secret.

Sakura sighed, shaking her head as she watches her brother push Renoir away, the young man still shaken. Kotaro walks up to her side and says as Genji and Renoir leave the room, "And remember, little punk! If you say a word aboutーOOUCH!"

Saki can't help but let out a gasp as Sakura stomps Kotaro's foot, hard, as Genji closed the door behind him. Next to her, Yugiri is covering her mouth, trying not to laugh.

**/…..**

Genji smirks as he hears the loud yelp as the door closes behind them.

(jackass deserved that)

Renoir is still shaking, unsure of what he had seen was real, turning around to see Genji, holding him still by the shoulder as he calmly pushes him away. "Di-did...did that...are they...they?" He can't even form words. Genji sighs.

"Yes, they are real, and yes, they are dead, and no, they're not dangerous," Genji explains, still pushing the young man, calmly but quickly towards the exit.

Once outside, Renoir blinks at the sunlight, unsure of what to do next; Genji's still holding his shirt tight, as if afraid he might bolt but Renoir is just too tired to run. He looks around, noticing the rather large mansion, with it's gates and dried weeds and trees and bushes. He blinks. Oh. Oh boy...it's...it's that old mansion! The one that...that's not...abandoned.

 _It's inhabited by zombies..._ he thinks, gulping.

Then, he hears barking. It sounds like a small dog, the barking is actually cute and all. Did it wander around here? Is the zombie mansion it's territory orー

Renoir almost collapses when he sees the little poodle dog; it looks like it's stretching, it's eye is bulging out of its socket, and those bloody fangs, oh god!

Genji holds him firmly by the shoulder as the dog barks again, obviously happy to see them. It sniffs Renoir's shoes, leaving behind some saliva that sticks like glue on Renoir's shoelaces. Renoir felt a little faint but Genji kept on pushing him, clicking his tongue at the dog in a friendly manner. "Go on, get back to the girls...you might need to bite someone." The dog barks, circles around them once, and disappears behind a bush. Once the poodle was out of sight, Genji says, "Yeah, the dog's dead, too. Let's go."

**/…..**

Renoir breathing normally now; the two young men are seated on a bench, not too far away from the zombie mansion. Genji already has a cigarette in his mouth, smoking it to his heart's content. He glances at Renoir once or twice, trying to gauge him out.

"So...feeling better?"

Renoir nods. "...yeah."

Genji grunts, blowing out smoke. He's silent for a few seconds, just smoking. "They're not dangerous, you know? They're just girls that got brought...back from the dead for a stupid reason."

"St-stupid…?"

"Yeah...to save Saga...can you believe it?" Genji shakes his head. "Fucking bastard."

"...uhm...so...so...how did you…?"

"Find out?" Genji finishes, as the other young man nods. "That girl...Sakura...she's really my sister…" The young man suddenly smiles, the cigarette dangling in his mouth. "She did eleven years ago, now...got run over." Genji shakes his head. "And now, she's saving Saga...pah…"

"Saga...huh?"

Genji says nothing as he finishes his cigarette; he glances at Renoir. "You can do whatever you want...no matter what that moron says, the girls won't dare hurt you, trust me. But…" Genji doesn't outright say it but it's obvious he doesn't want Renoir to talk about the whole zombie business. Renoir's willing to keep that a secret, besides, who would believe him? And who's to say that crazy guy won't go ahead with his threat? But then, he begins to think about what One-no, Sakura and her brother did for him. How they saved him from those punks, how they kept him out of harm's way. Sakura seemed like a nice girl...but she was dead. That was the problem. She was dead...she was a corpse, she was a zombie.

Renoir says nothing as he stands up and walks away. Genji doesn't try to stop him as he gets himself a new cigarette.

* * *

Reiko let out a loud sigh as she finally finished with the dishes; how could three people make such a mess of dishes in just two days, she never knew. At least the housework kept her busy while Maria was at school and her husband at work.

Yesterday, Susan had called her, inviting her out to have a drink while the husband and kid were at work and school respectively. It was rare for Susan to invite her for anything, instead preferring phone calls and the occasional reunion at the local malls. Whenever Susan called to invite her anywhere, it was usually to make small talk about certain things that Susan kept hearing about, to give Reiko a head's up in case it involved her and old Dorami. That Souta girl had made a really big mess when she killed that biker chick and Susan had worried that the other gang might try to retaliate against Reiko and her family, and she wasn't the only one. Most of the old gang called, too; they all went out for drinks, talked about the old days, and kept in contact for the holidays.

No one had come calling for Dorami's head, much less hers.

Reiko would have been happy if Dorami had stayed dead and buried but then, her daughter found out about her past and the rest was history. Literally.

The woman sighed, and looked around.

How did such a small house become dirty so quickly, anywー

A knock on the door stops Reiko's musings. She blinks, gets up, brushing her apron and walks, quickly, towards the door.

Opening it up, Reiko is greeted by a pair of strangers, a man and a rather familiar-looking woman with short blue hair. Reiko blinked. "Umm...yes? May I help you?"

"Ms. Kirishima?" the man asks and Reiko's eyes widened slightly before she glares.

No one calls her Kirishima unless it's the police, her old folks or…

"...who are you?"


	29. Suzuhara, Kirishima

**29 / Suzuhara, Kirishima**

A day later, still wearing yesterday's clothes and waking up with a bit of a headache, Renoir wonders if everything that had happened to him the last twenty-four hours had been nothing but a dream.

Maybe he hadn't actually run into an idol that turned into a corpse upon falling into a canal. Maybe he hadn't actually seen those other dead girls hiding in the shadows along with their dead dog. Maybe that crazy guy with the sunglasses hadn't actually threatened him if he told anyone what he had seen. And maybe that Genji guy didn't actually exist and that cigarette smoke that still clung to his clothes was his imagination.

Renoir let out a sigh, went to his desk and slammed his head, not too hard, against the wood. He groaned.

He knew he hadn't imagined all that. He knew what he had seen. Knew that Oneーno, Sakuraーwas a girl that was actually dead. She had told him herself, hadn't she?

"My name is Sakura Minamoto. And I died eleven years ago," was what she said. How do you make sense of all that? How does anyone make sense of anything, really?

Renoir gets up and on a whim, goes to his computer, typing away before he reaches his goal. It's an old video, a few months old. A recent concert in Drive-In Tori. He clicks it open and watches, with some morbid fascination as Sakura and the rest of those girls sing and dance and laugh along with the audience. Eventually, it's time for the girls to sign a few autographs and sell some merch and that's when the action starts; he sees the girl called Zero chase that chicken man all over the place with Sakura and Two running after them. He pushes himself away from the computer as the video plays, before stopping at the end.

The young man places a hand over his head, thinking before he goes to search for a name on the computer.

Sakura Minamoto.

Click and search.

At first, Renoir can't find much. He sees many Sakura's, all older, younger, even fictional. He can't seem to find the right one until he decides to type a bit more: dead.

He found a few more names. Nothing relating to the right Sakura until he happen upon an article hidden among the many other links. It was about a hit-and-run. The victim was seventeen year old, Sakura Minamoto, from the city of Karatsu, who on her way to school was mercilessly run over by an irresponsible driver who fled the scene. There was a picture of the street and finally, a picture of the dead girl, Sakura Minamoto.

Renoir let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

He hadn't imagined it, had he?

Everything that had happened, happened.

What had that Genji said...his sister and those dead girls...they had been brought back to save Saga...but, from what? Aliens!? Other freakin' zombies!? Okay, so Renoir's nerves were getting the better of him.

He quickly turns off the computer, head swimming.

Renoir just stares at the blank screen; he just can't believe it. He just can't.

Dead was dead.

But then again, Sakura Minamoto was very much the opposite. She was dead, but then again she really wasn't. Even that didn't make a lick of sense but Renoir couldn't deny it now.

Sakura Minamoto was real, as was One and the rest of Franchouchou and their dead dog. Everything was real. Everything was spinning.

Renoir sighed.

And here he was worried about getting a job.

* * *

Monday morning found Shinta Okoba and Aoi Mizuno staring at a particular house.

It was a little after ten, and there were a few people walking about; some were neighbors, others merely wanderers going on errands or walks. Aoi and Okoba appeared to be the odd ones out, having not moved from their place, with the doctor still staring at the house and Okoba glancing, once or twice, at a small piece of paper he held.

Yesterday, as he was getting ready to bed after his meeting with Takeo and Aoi, Okoba had gotten a call from Yoshi. Apparently, the old policeman had decided to forgive him this time, as the chief had taken pity on him; as none of the case files he had mailed Okoba were old cases, one of them already closed and the other as cold as winter, the chief figured it was alright. Although he did warn him that if he saw any news report about either of those kids, his ass was out the door. Yoshi had taken that warning to heart and told Okoba to either "hire a private detective or find himself some other guy" as he wouldn't be able to help him now that that new system was in place.

Okoba had thanked him of course, and Yoshi, kind and forgiven, decided to help Okoba find Kirishima's address, for a small fee of 20,000 yen. The reporter had grumbled a bit about it but relented. It took less than two hours to find the address. Kirishima still lived in Saga. She was still living in Karatsu.

(she never left)

With the information in hand, Okoba had informed Aoi and Takeo that he'll be meeting with Kirishima to tell her about his findings. Aoi had offered to go with him, on account of having free time as the clinic will take a while and Takeo would have come too, but was kept busy with work.

Now, they were both here, a few paces away from Reiko Kirishima's home and already Okoba was a bit nervous.

Reiko Kirishima had been bad news. Once. She had been the leader of Dorami, the toughest, meanest biker gang in all of Saga and to prove it, she along with Saki Nikaido, had conquered most of Kyushu in less than two years. Heck, their gang had taken care of the Oki, a gang that at one timeーif rumors were to be believedーwould have become part of the Yakuza had their original founder still lived. Kirishima and her gang had taken them out in less than a few months, and that's when they were just starting.

And then, Kirishima quit the gang after Nikaido's death and from what he had found out courtesy of 20,000 yen, was that Kirishima had cleaned up her act and gotten married some years back.

Even then, Okoba couldn't really let his guard down. For all he knew, Kirishima had gotten back with her old gang and was running things from the shadows like some sort of bad guy from a terrible action flick. He knew he was being paranoid. Again. But he just couldn't help it.

Kirishima had earned her reputation and if the rumors were true of Dorami coming back from the dead, he just couldn't pretend Kirishima herself was innocent. Sure, the gang had disappeared as quickly as it had appeared but that didn't prove anything.

Okoba only knew Kirishima by reputation alone and she had been a dangerous brat.

Aoi, ignoring the tense air of her companion, quickly walked across the street, followed quickly by Okoba. The doctor knocked gently at the door and calmly said, "I hope you're not thinking that Miss Kirishima is trouble…"

"Hmm...what?"

"You've been avoiding looking at the house for a few minutes now...distracting yourself with that little piece of paper," she explains with a small shrug.

"Well, you know...checking if we had the right address and all that..."

"I see," Aoi responded dryly. "Stand behind me, for all we know, she bites."

Okoba sighed. "Alright. So, I'm a tad bit concerned...for all we know, she's still trouble."

"In what way? I figured if what you told me is true, then Kirishima quit after Nikaido's sudden passing...I'm guessing she moved on from that type of life."

Okoba muttered, "One just doesn't move away from that life…"

As the door opened, Aoi glanced at him and mouthed back, "Watch and learn," before turning to stare at the woman standing in the doorway.

Reiko Kirishima was a pretty woman; she had long, purple hair, tied into a rather loose ponytail, purple eyes and a gentle, almost tired expression on her face, wearing an apron over her simple shirt and pants. From his place near the door, Okoba manages to glance inside the home, it seems well-kept, there's a broom and a bag nearby, telling him that Reiko was doing some common housework. Not what he was expecting, really.

"Umm...yes? May I help you?" Reiko is obviously confused; two strangers at her door, and Okoba can't really blame her.

"Ms. Kirishima?" Okoba almost wishes he hadn't said that name.

Reiko's shock is evident, before her eyes turned deadly, like a snake about to pounce on its prey. There's a bit of confusion in those eyes, but Okoba can tell he hit a nerve just by calling her by her maiden name, the name that had brought so much terror in just a few year's time.

"...who are you?" The question is rather slow, almost threatening.

"Umm...I...we…"

"We came to talk," Aoi quickly says, a passive smile in place. The other woman stares at the doctor, blinks and scowls.

"Then talk."

"Perhaps inside?" Aoi suggests but she's quickly shut down by Reiko.

"I'll rather not have you  _people_  in my house…"

Aoi laughs. "Oh, oh no, no…! I'm just a doctor, actually...and this here is a reporter, Shinta Okoba...perhaps you know him?"

Reiko is taken aback by the suddenness of all, blinking her distrust and anger away in an instant. She's confused, Okoba can tell that much.

"You…" Reiko begins, suddenly unsure. "You...are the author of that article...about those idols, right?" The young woman suddenly nods as if she's remembering something. She frowns. "And...you're here. Why?"

"We want to talk to you about Saki Nikaido," Aoi says, getting straight to the point. Her smile is gone, her expression serious. "And about Franchouchou and the girl that looks like the dead."

* * *

Renoir found Genji at the cafe; he was alone, drinking a cup of coffee, a small box by his side, probably cake.

After a few hours of thinking about zombies and idols and stuff, Renoir had taken a shower, had gotten dressed and had decided to wander around before arriving at the cafe by the beach. He didn't even want coffee and yet, he had come this way.

Genji noticed him, raising his cup a bit, as if arguing Renoir to get closer.

It was a little after twelve o'clock and people were already piling up, distracting the waitresses with their orders.

"Hi," Renoir said, sitting on the empty seat. Genji nodded.

"Hello."

Both were silent, the only noises around were the patrons and their gossip, the waitresses walking about taking orders and a glass breaking somewhere inside the little cafe. People turned towards the broken glass, Genji and Renoir ignored it.

"So…" Renoir began. "...umm…"

"How are you?" Genji asks, blue eyes staring straight at his brown ones. "Yesterday was quite the adventure, huh?"

"Umm...y-yeah...yeah, I guess."

Silence.

"Listen...Iー"

Genji raised a hand. "It's fine. Really. I expected something like this to happen eventually after I found out."

"Umm...about?"

"My sister and her friends getting found out," Genji explained. "If I found out, someone else was bound to find out too, you know?"

"Oh." Renoir is fidgeting a bit. He doesn't know what to say. "...about what you said…"

"Hmm?"

"You know...about...about Saga?"

Genji scoffed. "Oh, that. Saga's in trouble, and those girls came back to save it...if you catch my drift. That bastard," Genji spits that last word as if it were poison, "is the one that brought her...them back. Made them idols to try and save Saga."

"From what?"

"Godzilla, aliens, whatever...I don't really care," Genji finishes his coffee quickly before putting the cup down a little too hard. "I'll be honest with you," he begins. "You finding out...was an accident...me finding out was an accident, too, I guess…" Genji shakes his head. "My sister literally told me to drag your ass back to that mansion," he gestured with his head towards the mansion in the distance; Renoir could see a few lights illuminating the windows. "She thought those guys might find you knocked out and beat the life out of you."

"Ah…" At least that explained how Renoir had ended up in the mansion. These two had saved him. Again. Sort of.

"She's a sweet girl...that sister of mine…" Genji goes on, staring ahead. "Was too nice for her own good…People take advantage of that sweetness…"

"Umm...are...are you saying that...weirdo...umm, what was his name again…?"

"Moron," Genji offered and for the first time since Renoir woke up, he laughed.

"Hah! No, I'm sure that's not his name!"

"Well, it's what he deserves…"

Renoir smiles sadly. "...so, what's the plan?"

"Carrot cake," Genji answers, tapping the box by his side gently with his hand. "After that, who knows." He's staring at Renoir as he says that, wondering what the other young man is planning.

"Umm...I can't say I know what comes next…"

Genji nods. "It's fine...we can't force you to do what you don't want...but, I'm willing to pay."

"Huh?"

"You know...money?" Genji says, cocking his head to the side. "Yen. Dollars. Whatever. Pick and choose. I'll pay."

"Uh, what?"

Genji leans close, glancing a bit around before saying, "My sister's safety is my main priority right now," he explains. "I'm willing to pay for you to keep that secret between us."

Renoir seemed a little unsure; coming here, meeting with this guy again and been told he's getting paid for his silence was a bit too much. He could understand why Genji was doing this, though. That girl was his sister and if word got out...but...still, it felt wrong to just take Genji's money like it was nothing.

(besides, who would believe him?)

"I…" Renoir shakes his head. "I...I don't want your money…"

Genji stares at him, blinking before sitting straight again. "I see…"

"L-look...I get that you are...umm...worried...but, really? Who would believe me?"

"Probably not many people…" Genji told him, sighing. "But...I found out...and it took me weeks to even talk to her…" He blinked. "Huh. Hey, Suzuhara, right?"

"Oh? Uh, yes?"

"Seeing as you're not willing to take my money...maybe you'll like a job?"

"Umm...job?"

"The girls are idols, yeah?" Genji went on. "I'm giving them a hand with the music...sound design, composition, whatever they need...so, do you have a job?"

"N-no...but, what's that have toー"

"I'm willing to hire you." Genji tells him. "You ain't taking the money because you think it's wrong, right? You can work for it, then. I'm hiring you on the spot, if you'll take it."

"Wait…! What!?"

"I said I want to hire you," Genji said, smiling a bit at Renoir's look of surprise. "You in good conscience won't take my money, so I figured I can hire you and solve that problem."

"I...I don't think that's how it works…"

Genji shrugs. "Eh, it's my money...I can do what I want with it. I earned most of it." He glances at Renoir. "So...what's the word? You want it or not?"

"Uuhh…"

"You don't have to tell me now," Genji says. "Take your time. Think about it...and call me." He takes out a piece of paper and pen, writes a phone number and hands it towards him. "Here...you already know where the house is, yeah?"

"Uh...oh, yes…"

"Call me if you change your mind. That offer is still on the table." And then, Genji got up from his seat, took the box and walked away without waving goodbye. Walking, slowly but surely, towards the mansion.

* * *

Reiko's expression changes so fast that Okoba is suddenly afraid.

There's a glare in her eyes, and she's actually snarling. "What the fuck are ya on about?" she says, her speech changing with her mood. Aoi doesn't budge. Not even a bit.

"Her name is Number Two...you surely noticed the resemblance."

Reiko's glare hardened. "What are you getting at? And what's all this crap you're trying to pull?"

"Number Three looks like my daughter," Aoi says, eyes softening suddenly. That remark causes a small change in Reiko, but she's still glaring.

"So? People can look alike...it's...it's not a crime."

"It might not be a crime but it's a hell of a coincidence," Okoba buts in, suddenly brave. "Most of those girls have a dead doppelganger, you know? Konno Junko, Mizuno Ai, Hoshikawa Lily, Niー"

"I...don't see...your point," Reiko says slowly, she's breathing in and out a little too fast, as if she was trying to contain her fury, or maybe something else. "...I don't know you. Please leave." And she slams the door in their faces. Hard.

Aoi and Okoba stare at the closed door for a bit before the reporter sighs. "Well...that didn't help at all…"

Aoi glances to the side, expression unreadable. "She believed us...at least...or was trying to…"

"It didn't look like she wanted to talk about it at all…"

The doctor sighed. "Her friend literally threw herself over a cliff to prove a point...of course it will be a sore spot for the poor woman…"

**/…..**

Reiko waited until she heard the strangers leaving that she lets herself fall to the floor, a hand on her face, the tears falling down, unable to stop.

So, she hadn't really imagined it at all, had she?

That girl...that…

...that was Saki, wasn't it?

It explained so much, explained her resemblance, explained her voice, explained her craziness.

Only Saki Nikaido would dare fall off a cliff again just to save someone and prove a point.

"Goddammit, Saki...you...you bitch…" And Reiko just cried, ignoring everything around her, even the phone that had started ringing.


	30. Intermission of the Dead

**30 / Intermission of the Dead**

Sakura was waiting for her brother by the gate; she was wearing his jacket, it was a little too big for someone her size but it hid her appearance well as she waited. The little poodle dog was by her side, tongue hanging out, drool all over. Romero barked a few times as Genji got closer, seemingly happy to see him back again.

"Hey," Genji said, as he got closer, handing the box to the smiling zombie, who took it gratefully. "Couldn't get that strawberry cake. They're rather popular in the morning. Got a special discount on this carrot cake, though...so there's that."

"Oh! Well...I'm sure the girls won't mind…"

"So...what's your plan?"

"Huh?" Sakura's already turning to walk inside, Romero marching along with her, not a care in the world. "What do you mean? We have practice today, remember?"

Genji chuckled. "No, no...not that idol crap...I was talking about that Suzuhara kid."

"Oh…" Sakura seemed to think about before shaking her head. "Not much we can do about him...Kotaro's just pretending that nothing happened…" Genji scoffed behind her.

"Hmph, typical…"

"And even then...what can we do about it?"

Genji smiled a bit. "Well...there is something, actually...I ran into him after I got myself a cup of coffee."

"Did you?" Sakura's eyes widened a bit before she smiled sadly. "Is he alright?"

"If you're wondering if he's still sane, yes...he didn't look crazy to me."

"Genji…"

Her brother just shrugged. "He was fine. We talked. I tried bribing him…"

"Wait, wait...you what?" Sakura blinks at her brother. "Wha-what to do you mean you tried bribing him!?"

"What?"

"What do you mean 'what'!? Genji! I can't believe you!"

Genji just brushed his sister's anger off by waving his hand. "It's fine. He wouldn't take it."

"That's not the point!"

"I did try to hire him, though," Genji went on, ignoring Sakura's last remark. His sister turned to stare at her brother again, blinking with sudden confusion.

"Huh? Hire him?"

"Yeah, I figured since he wouldn't take the bribe," Sakura glared at him as he said that, "I thought it would be easier to just hire him...make him useful and keep him close, that sort of thing."

"Kotaro...Kotaro wouldn't want him around…"

"Who cares what he wants," Genji grumbled, glancing to the side. "What's his plan the next time someone else finds you out next? Hide under the bed? Dig a hole? Or pretend that nothing's happened because so far he's doing a damn good job at it and no, don't you tell me otherwise."

"Genji…"

"No, Sakura, no," Genji glares at the big mansion in front of him, as if it was somehow at fault for everything. "What's his deal, exactly? He brings people back from the dead and then makes them idols? What's he trying to pull? You...yo and those other girls," he sighed. "You and those girls...what's he on about? What does he want...and no, the whole "save Saga" charade is getting old and we both know that's never happening...didn't happen in the past, won't happen now." Sakura watches her brother as he goes on and on, letting his frustrations known.

She really doesn't know what to say, what to tell him.

Sakura still wasn't so sure if Kotaro's goal was just to "save Saga"; even back then, when her memory was gone and she had found out she was dead, Sakura had not really cared much about his plan to make her an idol. The plan was pretty stupid. They had started with that death metal concert, most of her friends out of their minds, shambling about, Sakura the only one with the mental capacity to understand what a terrible idea everything was and standing with her, seemingly out of his mind as well, was Kotaro Tatsumi, a man who wanted to take them to the top. Then, Sakura had seen a glimpse of her past in that concert and had figured that she should just go along with Kotaro's plan to recover her memories, not thinking about anything else but getting her memories back.

(and yet they did her no good...she had just found out her luck had never truly left her rest in peace)

"Look," Sakura says after a while. "I know you don't trust him...but…"

"I don't." Genji interrupted, sounding a bit angry. "I'm surprised you girls even got as popular as you did, with that moron's attitude." Sakura tried not to tell him about how they suffered for that popularity. "How do you know he's not just pulling you along for something else?"

"How do you know he will?" Sakura challenged causing her brother to cross his arms and huff in annoyance. "I get it, Genji...trust me, I do. I thought he was...a bit shady, at first but despite his strange brand of selfishness and nonsense, Kotaro's an alright guy…" Genji rolled his eyes.

"Oh, really?" Her brother shook his head and sent her an accusing look. "This was always your problem, you know? Seeing the good in people…" Sakura turned away, unsure of how to respond to an undeniable truth of the past. "How did that help you before? Huh? How did that help  _him_ …?" Genji's talking about someone else now but Sakura doesn't mind; below her, Romero is pawing at her leg gently, wandering what seems to be wrong.

"...it usually didn't," Sakura answers at last, staring at the box in her hands before glancing at the mansion." But...it was always worth it, right?" She's smiling again. It's a sad, almost nostalgic smile.

"Sakura…"

"Genji...Kotaro's fine."

Genji just let out a breath, uncrossed his arms and muttered, "Still hate him, though...that won't change…"

Sakura actually laughed at that. "I know…"

_Bring...bring...bring!_

The young man blinked, mildly confused from where the mysterious sound was coming from before taking the phone out of his pocket. Sakura watched him as he answered the call. "Kurosawa here," he answered, glancing at his sister before his eyes widened slightly. "Huh…it's...it's Suzuhara."

* * *

"Hmph…! Will Franchouchou have the rest of Saga down here by the end of the year!? Hmm!? HMM!?"

Three days later, and Kotaro Tatsumi was beyond annoyed.

If it wasn't bad enough that someone else had found them out, that someone else was currently sitting next to Genji Kurosawa.

"I mean," Ryu "Renoir" Suzuhara began rather nervously. "I...I can leave if it's bothering you…" He instantly regretted making a sound as Kotaro got in front of his face.

"NOOOO! Why would it be bothering me!?" Genji moved his head in front of Kotaro's before pushing him, not so gently, away from Renoir. The older man huffed before he went around marching to and fro in front of the girls, mumbling to himself. "And I ask again! Will Saga be here by the end of the year!?"

"Maybe," Genji responded, sounding bored. "If you revive Emperor Hirohito to act as their hype man, you might have some problems…" The rest of the girls, minus Tae and Sakura, who was glaring at her brother, let out a small round of giggles. Kotaro suddenly stopped marching and turned to Genji before going for the dried squid in his pocket and throwing it at Genji's face. The dried pieces of squid hit Genji in the face, rather pathetically, but that got the desired reaction. A glare. Tae, for her part, jumped onto the tasty snack that had now fallen on the floor. Renoir glanced at the zombie, a bit perturbed. Sakura was busy holding her brother back to care what her friend was doing at the floor.

Kotaro was mildly satisfied at his handiwork as he went on and on about the upcoming concert, smirking at Genji as Tae gulped down the last of the squid.

**/…..**

"I still can't believe you would do such a thing!"

"What?"

"Why would you throw that live squid at Tatsumi, Genji!?"

Yugiri tried her very best not to laugh as she helped Sakura and her brother move a few boxes towards the mansion.

The girls had just finished an early concert an hour ago; Sakura, Yugiri, and Genji had been tasked with moving the boxes of merchandise inside. The concert had been rather small, very few people had bought stuff. Saki had  _conveniently_  forgotten to bring in the box of shirts much to Kotaro's consternation. Still, most of the merchandise sold well, not enough to run out but just enough for at least another concert before they ran out.

"Tae almost tore his eyes out, Genji!"

"He still has his eyes, he's fine…"

"That's not the point!"

Lord Kotaro should have actually expected some sort of reprisal from Genji sooner or later but throwing a live squid at their manager's face had been a sight to behold. Saki certainly couldn't keep a straight face when she told the story after Sakura had asked why Kotaro's face was all red.

Early in the morning, a few hours before their concert was to start, Saki, Ai and Lily were outside, having a chat while Tae wandered about doing her thing. Kotaro was on the phone nearby, chatting, pleasantly to some organizer. Sakura, Junko and Yugiri were inside preparing some sandwiches to take with them as Kotaro had made it clear they wouldn't be taking any breaks nor making any stops back home, so the sandwiches were basically their lunch. Genji and Renoir had gone to get some bottled water for the girls on the van and had returned when Kotaro had finished his call.

As Saki tells it, Genji had just gotten out of the van, a black bag in his hands before grabbing something from inside and just flinging it at Kotaro. Their manager didn't have time to react as the squid, a still squirming, living squid, stuck to his face. Sakura's brother immediately said to the girls that he and Renoir would get a taxi to take them to the venue and had left, followed quickly behind by the poor Suzuhara boy who just stared in shock as Kotaro struggled with the squid on his face.

Saki, Ai and Lily just stared at Kotaro as he tried to get the squid off but then, Tae came to his rescue, tackling him to the ground to try to pry the thing off, biting hard and scratching.

The three girls stared at the scene for a bit before Saki let out a loud laugh, followed by Ai and Lily, who couldn't help but laugh at the silliness of it all. By the time Sakura and the others got out, the live squid had been eaten and Kotaro's face had been a mess of red.

"He started it, though…"

"Genji! Really!?" Genji just walks inside the mansion, completely ignoring the reprimand. Sakura just glares at him and then sighs. "Seriously…" Yugiri smiles.

"I am rather surprised though that Lord Kotaro did not see this coming," the courtesan commented, as she and Sakura walked side by side. "Considering what he did yesterday…"

"I'm willing to bet…" Sakura grumbled next to her. "I can't believe he did that…"

"Hopefully this doesn't turn into a habit," Yugiri said. Her companion shook her head.

"Genji was always a moody kid...we both are...in certain ways but to throw that live squid at Kotaro's face like that…"

"Ah," Yugiri said. "If he's anything like his big sister, he won't do anything he would regret." Sakura was just silent and the courtesan wondered if she had said something wrong before her friend smiled.

"His big sister will be glad if he's nothing like her…"

Yugiri couldn't help the worry that grasp her cold, dead heart as Sakura said those words. It reminded the courtesan of the few days were Sakura would just sleep the day away. Reminded her of the time she forgot about them. And the courtesan wondered if she had said something that had brought those dark thoughts back again.

Neither said more as they walked inside, already hearing the laughter and talk of the others.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys don't know how long I waited to write that particular part :)
> 
> Also, there's a small reveal this chapter...hopefully you can spot it!
> 
> See you next update! And Happy Halloween!


End file.
